Demigod Instruction Manual for Illusions 1.3
Copyright (c) 1993 by Paradox Development Corporation
All rights reserved.
Designed by Andrew Laakmann and Kris D'Nal
Programmed by Andrew Laakmann
INTRODUCTION --------------------------------------------------------------
Demigod status for a player in Illusions allows that player access to a
variety of commands that can alter the landscape of Illusions. Depending
upon their level, demigods can modify the world by creating and deleting
rooms, can add danger to the world with monster creation and modification,
and can add variety to the game with 'environment', trap, shop, and spell
commands.
Only the sysop can grant a player demigod status, since only the sysop has
access to the commands required for actual character modification. But
once a character is given demigod ability, that character has access to the
commands offered by their privilege level.
Character privileges in Illusions are between zero and 500. A zero
privilege means no demigod status, and that is the privilege automatically
assigned to new characters in the game. The sysop can elect to offer a
character higher privilege, up to the maximum of 500. All higher privilege
commands begin with a percent sign, and can be displayed along with the
other Illusion commands by typing "COMMANDS" at the Illusion prompt. Only
the higher privilege commands available to the player will be displayed
during the listing.
HIGHER PRIVILEGE COMMANDS ------------------------------------------------
The following list contains the available higher privilege commands along
with a short description for each. Some commands, most notably the
creation and edit commands, are discussed in detail after this listing.
On-Line help is available for each command by typing "HELP <Command>".
ROOM AND EXIT MODIFICATION COMMANDS
-----------------------------------
%CREATEROOM: expand the world by creating a new room (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATEROOM
Example: %CREATEROOM
Allows the creation of a new room.
%EDITPLAYER : edit a player's attributes
Usage: %EDITPLAYER <name>
Example: %EDITPLAYER Frodo
%CREATEEXIT : allows creation of an exit leaving your current room
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATEEXIT (Direction)
Example: %CREATEEXIT E
If an exit does not exist the the specified direction, you will be prompted
for a target room.
%DELEXIT : allows deletion of an exit (Privilege 300)
Usage: %DELEXIT (Direction)
Example: %DELEXIT E
%EDITEXIT: allows modification of an exit leaving your current room
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITEXIT (Direction)
Example: %EDITEXIT E
If an exit exists in the supplied direction, this command allows you to
modify the description associated with the exit. In addition, you can
attach locks and make exits require keys by using this command.
%EDITROOM: allows modification of the current room's description (Privilege
300)
Usage: %EDITROOM
Example: %EDITROOM
This command allows you to modify its description and whether or not it is
a 'dark' room.
%EDITDESC: can be used to quickly edit just the textual description of the
current room (Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITDESC
Example: %EDITDESC
NPC MODIFICATION COMMANDS
-------------------------
%COPYNPC : allows the duplication of an NPC in the current world (Privilege
300)
Usage: %COPYNPC <npc name>
Example: %COPYNPC Volek
This copies the supplied NPC into the current room. If you are copying
shopkeepers, use %EDITMONSTER to immediately change the name of the new
shopkeeper so there is no chance of a duplication of names.
%LISTMONSTERS : obtain a monster listing for a specific zone (Privilege
300)
Usage: %LISTMONSTERS (Zone #)
Example: %LISTMONSTERS 5
This command displays a listing of all monsters assigned to the supplied
zone.
%CREATEMONSTER: allows the creation of a new creature (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATEMONSTER
Example: %CREATEMONSTER
Allows the creation of a new monster for the world.
%EDITMONSTER: allows modification of a creature created by yourself
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITMONSTER (Monster Name)
Example: %EDITMONSTER Orcus Maximus
If the specified monster is standing in front of you in the current room,
this command will allow you to modify the creature's attributes.
%SUMMON (CALL): this allows you to summon another creature into the current
room (Privilege 200)
Usage: %SUMMON (Creature)
Example: %SUMMON Orcus Maximus
This command will call the specified creature into the current room,
assuming that one exists in the current world. This command can be used to
call other players into the current room as well.
%TELEPORT: use this command to teleport to another room number (Privilege
100)
Usage: %TELEPORT (Room Number)
Example: %TELEPORT 250
This command allows you to teleport anywhere in the current world, as
indicated by the room number you supply.
%WHERE: locate another creature in the world (Privilege 300)
Usage: %WHERE (Creature Name)
Example: %WHERE Orcus Maximus
Allows you to locate another creature in the current world. This command
will report back the creature's room number. The creature can be another
player or a monster.
ITEM MODIFICATION COMMANDS
--------------------------
%COPYITEM : allows the duplication of an item in the current world
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %COPYITEM <item name>
Example: %COPYITEM long sword
The item to be copied must exist in the current room, and the new one will
appear there on the floor.
%CREATEITEM: forge a new item (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATEITEM
Example: %CREATEITEM
Allows the creation of a new item, see later section for more information.
%EDITITEM: allows modification of an item created by yourself (Privilege
300)
Usage: %EDITITEM (Object name)
Example: %EDITITEM Wicked Sword
If the specified object is sitting on the floor in front of you, this
command will allow you to modify the attributes associated with that item.
See later section for more information.
TALK MODIFICATION COMMANDS
----------------------
%CREATETALK : adds a message entry to the talk database (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATETALK
%DELTALK : removes a message entry from the talk database (Privilege 300)
Usage: %DELTALK <message title>
Example: %DELTALK Maze Info 1
Use %LISTTALK to display a list of all messages in the database if you wish
to find the title of a message.
%EDITTALK : allows you to modify the attributes associated with a message
in the talk database (Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITTALK <message title>
Example: %EDITTALK Maze Info 1
Use %LISTTALK to display a list of all messages in the database if you wish
to find the title of a message.
%LISTTALK : lists all the messages in the talk database (Privilege 300)
Usage: %LISTTALK [message class]
Example: %LISTTALK
%LISTTALK Maze Class
This command can be used to list all the messages, or just those within a
certain message class.
SPELL MODIFICATION COMMANDS
---------------------------
%CREATESPELL : adds a spell to the world's spell book (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATESPELL
%DELSPELL : deletes a spell from the world's spell book (Privilege 300)
Usage: %DELSPELL <spell name>
Example: %DELSPELL Light
Use %LISTSPELLS to see a listing of all spells if you wish to find a
particular spell's name.
%EDITSPELL : allows modification of the attributes associated with a spell
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITSPELL <spell name>
Example: %EDITSPELL Light
Use %LISTSPELLS to see a listing of all spells if you wish to find the name
of a particular spell.
%LISTSPELLS : lists all spells within the system or just within a class
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %LISTSPELLS [class name]
Example: %LISTSPELLS
%LISTSPELLS Wizard
SHOP MODIFICATION COMMANDS
--------------------------
%CREATESHOP : adds a shop entry to the current world (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATESHOP
You will be given menus in order to describe the shop you wish to create.
%DELSHOP : deletes a shop entry from the current world (Privilege 300)
Usage: %DELSHOP
You will need to select the shop for deletion from the supplied menu.
%LISTSHOPS : lists all of the shops in the current world (Privilege 300)
Usage: %LISTSHOPS
%EDITSHOP : allows the modification of the response and buy/msg class for a
shop (Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITSHOP
You will need to select your shop from the displayed shop.
%SHOPITEMS: lists all items stored by the shopkeeper in the current room
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %SHOPITEMS
Example: %SHOPITEMS
Items stored by shopkeepers are included by the ghost event when it
distributes items to the various stores.
%SHOPGIVE: allows you to add an item to a shopkeeper's storage list
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %SHOPGIVE <item name>
Example: %SHOPGIVE Long Sword
%SHOPTAKE: through this command you can remove an item from a shopkeeper's
storage list (Privilege 300)
Usage: %SHOPTAKE <item name>
Example: %SHOPTAKE Long Sword
TRAP MODIFICATION COMMANDS
--------------------------
%CREATETRAP: allows creation of a trap (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATETRAP
Example: %CREATETRAP
This command can be used to create a new trap. A trap is some special
'triggerable' event in the current room.
%EDITTRAP: allows modification of a trap in the current room created by
yourself (Privilege 300)
Usage: %EDITTRAP (Noun)
Example: %EDITRAP leather book
This command allows you to modify the attributes associated with a trap. If
the trap has no name, simply use %EDITTRAP without a noun, and that trap
will be edited.
%DELTRAP : allows deletion of a trap in the current room
Usage: %DELTRAP <Noun>
Example: %DELTRAP leather book
If the trap has no noun, simply use %DELTRAP with a noun and that trap will
be deleted.
%LISTTRAPS : lists the traps in the room or world
Usage: %LISTTRAPS [ALL]
Example: %LISTTRAPS,
%LISTTRAPS ALL
If the ALL keyword is supplied, all traps in the current world are listed.
ZONE COMMANDS
-------------
%LISTZONES: allows listing of all zones in the current world (Privilege
300)
Usage: %LISTZONES
Example: %LISTZONES
This command will list all of the zones in the current world.
%CREATEZONE: allows creation of a new zone (Privilege 300)
Usage: %CREATEZONE
Example: %CREATEZONE
This command can be used to create a new zone. A zone is a logical area
where creatures can be assigned to roam. A zone can be as small as one
room and as large as the whole world.
MISC COMMANDS
-------------
%DELETE: allows the deletion of an item or creature forged by you
(Privilege 300)
Usage: %DELETE (object name)
Example: %DELETE Orcus Maximus
This command can be used to destroy either monsters or items created by
yourself. The object must be present and on the floor in your current
room.
%E : the environment command (Privilege 100)
Usage: %E (Message to broadcast)
Example: %E Lightning strikes the ground.
This command broadcasts the supplied message to all players currently in
the game. Using this command, a demigod can add spice and variety to the
game.
THE %EDITPLAYER COMMAND ---------------------------------------------------
This section contains an overview of the %EDITPLAYER command. This command
can be used to modify any player (including yourself) within the current
world.
When issuing the %EDITPLAYER command, you must supply the name of the
character you wish to modify. For instance, "%EDITPLAYER frodo", or
"%EDITPLAYER gandalf" would be valid commands if those players existed
anywhere in the current world.
Once the command is issued, you will be presented with the following data
form:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Player Edit
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
_____________________ [______] ( ___________________, __________________)
_________________________________________________________________________
Privilege: ___ (sysop only)
Level: ___ Experience _________
Hit Points: _____ of _____ Spell Points: _____ of _____
Armor Class: ___ Gold: ________
Weapon: __________________________ Attack Verb: ___________
To Hit: ____ ______ + ____
Spell classes known: ________________________ Max Spell Level: ________
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can move between the various fields by using the arrow keys. Note that
moving past the first or last field will cause Illusions to save the
current form and return to the game. At anytime you can cancel your
current changes by pressing [ESC]. Finally, if you wish to save the
current form and return to the game, press CTRL-W (or move past the first
or last fields).
The first field, unnamed and located in the upper left, contains the
player's ALIAS. This is the name by which this character is referenced on
the command line.
The second field, located between brackets, contains the ALIGNMENT of the
character. Currently, two alignments are supported: GOOD and EVIL.
The next field is the RACE field. In general, you should not modify this
field, as the player selected the race that they desired upon generation of
their character. If you do modify their race, be sure and add a race that
already exists in Illusions.
The next field, located after the comma, is the OCCUPATION field. Modify
this field with the same warnings that applied to the RACE field.
The next line down contains the TITLE field. This is the long, screen
width field. This field holds the title of the character, which is
displayed along with the character's alias when the character is viewed
within a room.
The PRIVILEGE (sysops only) field holds the character's privilege level.
See the guide section above for information on assigning privilege levels.
The LEVEL field holds the character's current experience level.
The EXPERIENCE field holds the total amount of experience acquired by this
character throughout their adventures.
The HIT POINTS field contains the character's current and maximum hit
points. When the current hit points fall to zero or below, the character
dies.
The SPELL POINTS field contains the character's current and maximum spell
points. If a player cannot use magic, this field has no significance.
The ARMOR CLASS field determines how difficult it is to hit this character.
The lower the score, the more difficult this character will be to hit.
Illusions automatically calculates this value based on readied items and
natural ability.
The GOLD field holds the quantity of gold coins currently carried by this
character.
The WEAPON field determines this character's basic weapon. The basic
weapon is the weapon that this character attacks with when they have not
wielded a weapon. Illusions normally uses "fists" for this weapon, but it
can be anything you would like. Remember, once a character wields a
weapon, the basic weapon will no long be the one used.
The next field is the ATTACK VERB. This field is the action verb that
Illusions uses whenever this character attacks another player. This verb
can be anything you wish, although it needs to end with an "s" to be
grammatically correct with the sentence that Illusions will substitute it
in. Some example verbs are: claws, thrusts, strikes, mangles, lunges, etc.
The TO HIT field is composed of three fields. The first is the hit
adjustment this character receives when attacking. The higher this value,
the more likely an attack will score a hit. The next field is the basic
weapon damage. This is the damage inflicted upon an opponent when the
character scores a hit and has not wielded a weapon. As elsewhere in
Illusions, this damage value is represented in "dice roll" format. This
format is as follows:
(Number of times to roll) d (Maximum value of a single roll)
For example: 1d10, means roll a ten sided die once.
2d4, means roll a four sided die twice and add them up
The first number can be anything you like, but the smaller the number, the
faster program execution speed will be.
The final field of the TO HIT field is the absolute damage adjustment.
This value is added to the result of all damage rolls (either basic weapon
or wielded weapon) and can be considered the minimum amount of damage that
this character can inflict with a single hit.
The last two fields concern magical spells. The first, SPELL CLASSES
KNOWN, contains the type or types of spells known by this character. This
field can currently contain "SORCERER" or "CLERIC" or both (separated by a
space). For instance, if the player can only cast sorcerer spells, then
this field will read "SORCERER". If this character can cast both sorcerer
and clerical spells, then this field will read "SORCERER CLERIC". The next
field, MAX SPELL LEVEL, holds the maximum obtainable spell level for this
character. A character will never be able to cast a spell with a greater
level than the value in this field.
CREATION ------------------------------------------------------------------
The following section describes how each of the various creation commands
work. Create carefully, as a world filled with junk is not a fun place for
adventure!
ROOM CREATION -------------------------------------------------------------
After typing the "%CREATEROOM" command, Illusions will prompt you for a
direction in which to create the new room. Obviously, you can only create
a room in a direction where one already doesn't exist.
Once Illusions has confirmed that it can create a room in the direction you
request, you will be prompted with a 'data form'. A data form is a screen
where you can enter/modify the attributes of some object in Illusions. In
general, all data forms operate the same way. The arrow keys can be used
to move around the various fields. Moving past the first or last field
will prompt Illusions to leave the current form. At anytime you can save
the current data form by typing CTRL-W. You can cancel a data form by
pressing <ESC>. The room data form looks like the following:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edit Room
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Room Title: ________________________________
Zone Number: ________ Is the room dark (T or F) ?: ___
Use ^] to edit the memo description.
Description: memo
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
The room data form has one special field, not described above, and that is
the 'memo' field. A memo field allows you to type in a long passage rather
than just some fixed length string. In the case of room creation, the memo
field allows you to type in a long room description. To enter a room
description, move to the memo field and press CTRL-]. After pressing that
key you will enter an editor that allows you to type in your room
description.
One note needs to be said about the editor. All room descriptions MUST end
with a carriage return, and the editor does not automatically supply this.
To add this carriage return, type CTRL-N after the last word in your
description. Illusions will then place a '<' at the end of the line to
mark the carriage return.
In the ROOM TITLE field, supply the one line message that will be used as a
title to this room. Not all rooms need a title, although it is helpful for
players who use the 'FAST' option to eliminate the long room description
from their display.
The ZONE NUMBER field determines what zone this room will be in. The zone
number you supply must already exist for you to place the room within it.
Zone numbers are used to allow wandering monsters - monsters that when
killed are moved randomly into a new room, but only into room within the
zone in which they are assigned.
This IS DARK field determines if some sort of artificial light, like a
lantern or torch, is required for this room to be visible.
Once you have terminated the room create data form by either typing CTRL-W
or moving beyond one of the end fields, Illusions will prompt if you wish
to save your new room. If you do, answer 'Y' to this question. Once
saved, you will enter the %EDITEXIT data form, where you can setup the
exits and entrances into your new room.
If you wish to just modify the room text at a later time, the %EDITDESC
command can be used to jump right into the description editor.
EXIT MODIFICATION ---------------------------------------------------------
The exit edit data form can be used to modify the attributes associated
with a passage from one room to another in the current world. The ten exit
attributes allow much flexibility for the display and interaction of exits
within your Illusions world.
This is the edit exit data form:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edit Exit
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Open Text 1:
__________________________________________________________________________
Open Text 2:
__________________________________________________________________________
Close Text 1:
__________________________________________________________________________
Close Text 2:
__________________________________________________________________________
Description:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
One Way (T or F)? _ DoorType: __________ DoorStatus: _____
Keyword: _________________ Key: ________
An exit has five description fields: OPEN TEXT 1, OPEN TEXT 2, CLOSE TEXT
1, CLOSE TEXT 2, and DESCRIPTION. The OPEN TEXT fields are used to display
a line of text to the players around this passage when the exit is
'opened'. The OPEN TEXT 1 field is displayed to a player when that player
stands in the source room of the exit, i.e. the room where the exit was
created, and the OPEN TEXT 2 field is displayed to a player when that
player stands in the target room of the exit (assuming the exit is not one
way). The CLOSE TEXT fields work in a similar fashion, except they are
displayed to players when the exit they are viewing is closed. The
DESCRIPTION field is displayed to a player when that character chooses to
"EXAMINE" the exit.
The ONE WAY field determines whether this exit is one way, i.e. a player
can move through the exit from the source room into the target room, but
not vice versa. Use one way exits sparingly, as they tend to confuse the
weary adventurer (unless that is your plan!).
Use the KEYWORD field to assign a keyword to your exit. A keyword is the
phrase characters will use when referencing this exit. For instance, if
this exit is described by "A wooden door heads east", then WOODEN DOOR
would be a good choice of keyword. Then, a user could type "EXAMINE WOODEN
DOOR" to display the text (if any) contained within the DESCRIPTION field
of this exit. An exit with a keyword can basically be considered a "door",
since it can be referenced by the user. If an exit has no keyword, then it
is essentially a passage way that the user can move through, but not
interact with.
The DOOR TYPE field determines if this exit has a lock on it or not. This
field can be "NONE", "LOCKED", or "ALOCK". A locked exit must be unlocked
by the player before it can be opened, and an optional key can be assigned
to the lock within the KEY field. If a key is assigned to an exit, the
user must have an item in their inventory which matches the KEY field.
Note, if an exit does not have keyword and is LOCKED, there will be no way
a user can unlock this door, so keywords are highly recommended for locked
and closed doors! The "ALOCK" door differs from the "LOCKED" door in that
"ALOCK" doors will automatically lock behind the player, while "LOCKED"
doors will stay unlocked until someone actually locks it.
The final field, DOOR STATUS, contains the state of the exit. This can be
"NONE", "OPEN", "CLOSED", or "LOCKED". The "NONE" string should be used
for passage ways, while the others hold the current state of a door, i.e.
either open, closed, or locked. When a locked door becomes unlocked, it is
switched into the "CLOSED" state.
ITEM CREATION AND MODIFICATION --------------------------------------------
The %CREATEITEM and %EDITITEM commands can be used to create and modify an
item. For %CREATEITEM, you need only specify the command and Illusions
will display a blank item data form for your new item. The %EDITITEM
command needs to be supplied with an item name to edit, and that item must
be present and on the floor in your player's current room.
This is the item data form:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edit Item
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
______________________ [ ______________________________________________ ]
Class: _______________ Weight: _______ Cost: $__________ Cursed: ____
To hit: __ ______ + ___ AC: ______
Slaying Ability: _____xDAMAGE against: __________________
Spell captured in item: _________________________ (Charges: ___)
Light rounds remaining: _____________
Wield To: ______________ Appearance Change: _______________
Engraving upon item:
_________________________________________________________________________
The item data form contains many fields that describe the various
attributes of an item. The top two fields (without labels), are the item
keyword and item description, respectively from left to right. The KEYWORD
is the word or phrase players will use when referencing the item with an
Illusions command, for instance "TAKE LONG SWORD". The bracketed field
contains the display players will see when viewing the item in the current
room or in their inventory. If no display is present, Illusions will
simply display the keyword as the description. Here are some examples:
KEYWORD DISPLAY
-------------- ----------------------
LONG SWORD long sword (+0,+1)
SCROLL scroll of poison
MUSTY BOOTS musty boots (+2,+2)
In general, the following standard templates should be used for item
displays.
- WEAPON DISPLAY TEMPLATE:
Weapon Name (to Hit adjust, to Damage adjust) [AC adjust] abilities
Example: long sword (+3,+2) [2] of death
- ARMOR DISPLAY TEMPLATE:
Armor Name (Normal AC adjust, enchanted adjust) abilities
Example: Field plate armor (+8,+1)
The CLASS field defines what type of item this item will be. For instance,
weapons, armor, keys, and lights are all of different classes. This class
distinction is most important to shop keepers, who will only buy and sell
items of certain classes. Here is a listing of the various classes:
Class Name Examples
---------- -----------
ACCESSORY shield, boots, hats
ARMOR leather armor, chain mail, ring mail
KEY spider key, black key
LIGHT torch, lantern, magical globe
TREASURE golden crown, emerald necklace
WEAPON swords, staff, maces
The WEIGHT field determines how much this item weighs. Obviously, this
value is added to a player's current weight when the item is taken, and
subtracted when it is dropped.
The COST field contains how much the item will cost when purchased from a
shopkeeper.
The CURSED flag can be used to create a cursed item. A cursed item is one
that, once readied, cannot be taken off by the player. For instance, if a
player readies a cursed sword, then that weapon will be the player's weapon
until they are killed, and they can neither drop the weapon nor ready
another one. Once they are killed, the weapon will drop to the floor and
wait for the next adventurer.
The TO HIT and DAMAGE fields are used when this item is (and can) be
wielded as a weapon. The first field (TO HIT) is the item's 'to hit'
adjustment. The higher this number, the more likely it is that the player
will score a hit against their opponent. The next field is the dice roll
and adjustment value used to calculate the weapons damage. Dice rolls have
the following format throughout Illusions.
(Number of times to roll) d (Maximum value of single roll)
For instance, a "2d4" means to roll a four sided die twice and add them up,
resulting in an end value between 2 and 8. The final field is the absolute
adjustment, i.e. "2d4+10" means do the original roll and then add 10 to the
value.
The SLAY ABILITY field allows you to make the item (assuming that it is a
weapon) particularly effective against certain creatures or types of
creatures. The first field (the one with the decimal point) contains the
multiplier and the second field contains the target creature type. If the
string you supply in the target creature type appears anywhere in opponents
race, alignment, name, or occupation, then the damage inflicted will be
multiplied by the multiplier.
The ARMOR CLASS ADJUSTMENT field will be subtracted from the players AC
when they ready this item. A positive number in this field is better, and
will make they player more difficult to hit.
The SPELL CAPTURED IN ITEM and CHARGES field concern items that have
magical properties. Any item can be enchanted with a spell from the
current spell book by placing that spell name in the SPELL CAPTURED IN ITEM
field. The CHARGES field contains the number of times that the item's
spell can be invoked before its magical ability is lost. An enchanted item
can be used by typing the "USE" command.
The LIGHT ROUNDS REMAINING field holds how many rounds of light that this
item can emit before it fizzles out. This value only has meaning when the
WIELD TO field is set to "LIGHT". In addition, this value is only
decremented when the player has readied the light source.
The WIELD TO field tells Illusions where upon the player's body this item
can be readied to. If no WIELD TO area is specified, then the item can
simply be carried around and never selected. There are ten different
places that items can be selected to:
WIELD TO Example
-------- -----------
HEAD hat, helmet
NECK necklace, vampire bites
BODY ring mail armor, plate armor
ARM shield
HANDS gloves
FINGER ring
FEET boots, slippers
ABOUT cloak
LIGHT torch, lantern
WEAPON sword, whip, flail, mace
The APPEARANCE CHANCE is the percentage chance that an item will appear in
store on any given day, and the dice roll determines the quantity the shop
keeper will get in if the item does appear. This field has a specific
format as follows:
(Percent chance)%, (Dice Roll).
EXAMPLE: 50%, 1d4 : means there is a fifty percent chance that the store
owner will get this item in, and that he will have one, two, three, or four
to sell that day. Some special instructions concern the random appearance
of items, see the following section, "SHOPKEEPER STORAGE" for more
information.
The last field, ENGRAVING UPON ITEM, is a description line that will be
displayed to players when they EXAMINE this item. It can be anything you
like, including text, marks, glows, and other details.
Once an item has been created, a copy of it can be created by issuing a
%COPYITEM command. Simply type %COPYITEM <item name> and a new item will
appear in room. You must be in the same room as the original item to copy
it.
SHOPKEEPER STORAGE -------------------------------------------------------
An item must be in a shopkeeper's storage bin to have a chance of being
given to that storekeeper each day. The APPEARANCE CHANCE controls the
likely hood that an item will appear once it has been stored by a
shopkeeper. Three commands: %SHOPITEMS, %SHOPGIVE, and %SHOPTAKE, can be
used to interact with a shopkeeper's storage bin.
When in the same room as a shopkeeper, issue a %SHOPITEMS command to see
what items are currently being stored by the shopkeeper. To give an item
to a shopkeeper, issue a %SHOPGIVE <item name> command. You must be
carrying and have created the item you wish to give.
Once you have given an item to a shopkeeper, the daily distribution event
will decide based on its APPEARANCE FIELD whether or not to make the item
available for sale.
To remove an item from a shopkeeper's storage list, issue a %SHOPTAKE <item
name> command.
MONSTER CREATION AND MODIFICATION ----------------------------------------
The %CREATEMONSTER and %EDITMONSTER commands can be used to create and
modify monsters. Upon issue of either command, you will be presented with
the following data form:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Monster Edit
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
_____________________ [_____] (______________, __________ ) - Level: ___
Experience: ______________
Hit points: _____ of _____
Armor Class: ___
Weapon: ______________________ Attack Verb: _______
To Hit: ____ _____ + ___
Aggressive: _ Mobile: _
Gold Roll: ____________ Random appearance in zone: _____
Description:
__________________________________________________________________________
The first field, which is unnamed, is the NAME field. This is the name and
keyword of this creature. Players can use this word to reference the
monster. For instance, "ATTACK ORCUS" will cause Illusions to search for a
creature called ORCUS in the current room.
The next field, which is bracketed, contains the ALIGNMENT of the creature.
Unless provoked, creatures will not attack other creatures of the same
alignment. Note that currently, all new characters have a "GOOD"
alignment.
The RACE field of a monster allows you to logically group various monsters
together. Generally, the only value this serves is for magical weapons,
since weapons can be assigned to do extra damage against certain types of
creatures, and the RACE field is one of the key fields along with
ALIGNMENT, NAME, and OCCUPATION.
The LEVEL field holds the monster's experience level. This skill level is
equivalent to a player's skill level. The higher this number, the more
skilled this creature is in combat and the more likely it will score a hit.
The EXPERIENCE field holds the bonus that a player with receive every time
a hit is scored upon this creature. Whenever the player successfully hits
this creature, their experience will be boosted by this amount. With that
in mind, higher skilled and more difficult to kill creatures should be
given more experience points.
The MAXIMUM HIT POINTS field stores the hitpoints that the monster receives
every time that they are regenerated. This number represents the maximum
number of hit points that a player can inflict upon the creature before it
dies.
The ARMOR CLASS field determines how difficult it is to hit this monster.
This value can be virtually any value, but typically values between -10 and
25 are most reasonable. Note that once the number reaches 0, it becomes
highly unlikely that a player will score a hit without using magical means,
The TO WEAPON field is used to specify a description of the weapon that you
have armed this creature with. This field really doesn't serve any useful
purpose except to offer players a little variety when EXAMINING the
monsters in your Illusions world.
The ATTACK VERB is similar to the TO WEAPON field in that it serves to add
spice to the game. This verb must end with an "s" and will be displayed
whenever the creature attacks someone else. The following are common
attack verbs: claws, strikes, thrusts, slices, gazes, bites, hugs, etc.
The TO HIT field is the bonus to the monster's attack roll. This works in
combination with the level field to determine how likely it is that this
creature will score a hit.
The next field is the DAMAGE field, and this holds the dice roll from which
damage to opponents is calculated. As is required for all dice rolls, this
field must have the following format:
(Number of times to roll) d (Maximum value of a single roll)
For example: 1d10 will roll a ten-sided dice once
2d15 will roll a fifteen-sided dice twice
For best program execution speed, keep the first number relatively small.
The field directly after DAMAGE is the DAMAGE ADJUSTMENT field. This is
simply a damage offset, and this value is added to the DAMAGE ROLL to
create the total damage inflicted on a successful hit.
The AGGRESSIVE field determines if your monster will attack without
provocation. An aggressive monster will attack as soon as a player enters
the room. An unassertive monster will only attack after it has been
attacked and has thus become enraged.
The MOBILE field determines if your monster will be randomly moved after it
is killed. A MOBILE monster will be deposited randomly into another room
in its zone after it has been killed. If a monster is not MOBILE, it will
vanish once killed and reappear in the same room on the next day. The
RANDOM APPEARANCE IN ZONE field contains the zone number that your monster
is restricted to (assuming it is MOBILE).
The last field is the DESCRIPTION field. This field contains the
description of the monster as characters will see it when they enter the
room. If none is given, just the name of the monster will be used for the
display. Feel free to be as creative as you would like when using the
field!
Once a monster or NPC (non-player character) has been created, a duplicate
can be generated by using the %COPYNPC <name> command. Simply supply the
name of the NPC or monster you wish to copy, and a new one will appear in
the current room. After copying, if you wish to change the name of the new
NPC, simply use the %EDITMONSTER command.
SHOP CREATION ------------------------------------------------------------
Shops can be attached to any shopkeeper in the game. To create a shopkeeper
either use the %COPYNPC command to copy an existing shopkeeper (using
%EDITMONSTER to change their name), or use %CREATEMONSTER to create an NPC
and then set their occupation field to SHOPKEEPER.
Once a shopkeeper has been created, a shop can be attached to them using
the %CREATESHOP command. After issuing the command you will be prompted
for the name of the shopkeeper you wish to attach this shop to, as well as
the type of shop you wish to create. Note that if you wish to create a
shop that can both buy and sell items, you will need to create two entries
for that shopkeeper, one for buying and one for selling. If you are
setting up a shop that will buy items back from players, you will need to
supply a BUYCLASS which indicates which class of items you wish this shop
to buy back.
To delete a shop, use the %DELSHOP command and select the appropriate shop
for deletion from the list. If the shop keeper is carrying or storing any
items, they will be deleted along with the shop entry. If you wish to list
all of the shops in the current world, use %LISTSHOPS.
The response text and the buy/msg class of a shopkeeper (for those buying
items back from players or talking to them) can be set using the %EDITSHOP
command. Again you will need to select the actual shop from a list in
order to do your editing.
If you are creating a shop that will sell items to players, and you wish
for items to randomly appear in the shop, see the section above for
information on "giving" an item to a shopkeeper. The commands involved are
%SHOPGIVE, %SHOPTAKE, and %SHOPITEMS.
For shopkeepers that talk to a player via the TALK command, you will need
to select the message class that this shopkeeper uses. Messages can be
created with the message commands (see section below). When a player talks
to a message shopkeeper, they will be prompted for a "gold donation"
(unless the message class ends with a "*", see below for more information).
Based on this amount, a random message from the shopkeeper's message class
is selected and displayed. Only messages that cost less than or the same
amount as the donated gold will be included in the random display. Thus,
more important and rarer messages can be assigned a higher cost.
CREATING/EDITING TALK MESSAGES -------------------------------------------
Certain shopkeeper's can be instructed to TALK to a player upon issue of
that command. When triggered, the shopkeeper will select a random message
from their message class and display it to the user. The %CREATETALK,
%DELTALK, %CREATETALK, and %EDITTALK commands can be used to create
messages and message classes that the talking shopkeepers can draw from.
To create a message, simply type %CREATETALK and complete the form. The
message text is contained within the memo field. The title of the message
is the handle by which you'll be able to reference this message (for later
editing and deletion). The cost is the minimum gold amount a player must
give the shopkeeper keep in order to see the message. The class is the
message class that this message is associated with. A talking shopkeeper
is assigned an individual message class and they draw the responses from
there. NOTE: if the message class ends with an *, such as "SWORD*", a
shopkeeper assigned this class WILL NOT ask for a gold amount, and instead
will assume a 0 gold donation. Use of a "*" message class allows
shopkeepers to simply respond when queried with TALK.
If you wish to see all of the messages in the system, type %LISTTALK. If
you wish to just display the messages within a given class, type %LISTTALK
<class name>.
To later edit a message, type %EDITTALK <message title>, where <message
title> is the title of the message you wish to edit.
CREATING/EDITING SPELLS ---------------------------------------------------
The %CREATESPELL, %EDITSPELL, %DELSPELL, and %LISTSPELLS commands can be
used for spell creation and modification. These commands work in a similar
fashion to the message modification commands.
The %LISTSPELLS command can be used to list all the spells in the current
world. If you wish to just list a particular class of spells, use the
%LISTSPELLS <class name> command, such as %LISTSPELLS WIZARD.
When editing or creating a spell, the following data form will appear:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Spell Modification
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name: _______ Class: _______
Level: __ SPoints: ________
Effect: __________ Target: _
AlterField: __________
NReplace: __________ Dice Roll: ______ Adj: ___
MByLevel: _ EffectAll _
Display: ________________________________________________________________
Exp: ____
__________________________________________________________________________
The NAME of the spell is simply the title of the spell. This name is the
one used by players when casting the spell.
The CLASS is the type of spell class for this spell. Valid values are
WIZARD, CLERIC, or MAGICIAN.
LEVEL is the spell level for this spell. More advanced characters can cast
spells with a higher spell level.
SPOINTS is the amount of spell energy required to cast this spell.
The EFFECT field determines how the spell should effect the field specified
in ALTERFIELD. Note that the "generated number" indicated below will be
described in a bit. Valid values for the EFFECT field are:
REPLACE : the ALTERFIELD value is replaced by the generated number
DAMAGE : the ALTERFIELD value is lowered by the generated number
HEAL : the ALTERFIELD value is raised by the generated number
LIGHT : a special type that allows LIGHT spells, ALTERFIELD is
ignored in this case
The TARGET field determines if this spell requires a target. The only
spells that don't require a target are those with the EFFECTALL set, or
those with an EFFECT of light.
The ALTERFIELD determines the target of the EFFECT verb, valid values for
this field are:
LOCATION : the target's location is modified (Teleportation)
EXP : the target's experience is modified
HPOINTS : the target's hit points are modified
SPOINTS : the target's spell points are modified
GOLD : the target's gold is modified
ENRAGED : the target's ENRAGED (for NPCs only) status is modified
Note that if invalid types are used in the EFFECT or ALTERFIELD fields, a
runtime error will occur when the spell is cast, so check your spelling
carefully and test your spell.
The actual number used by EFFECT and ALTERFIELD is generated from the
values of NREPLACE, DICEROLL, and ADJ. If NREPLACE is non zero, the
NREPLACE value is used directly. If NREPLACE is zero, then the value is
computed from the DICEROLL and ADJ field. This computation is the same as
is done for weapons and basic damage, so see the previous sections for
information on die rolls and adjustments.
The MBYLEVEL field determines if the number generated should be multiplied
by half of the player's level. This allows spells to have an increasing
effect as a player's level increases.
The EFFECTALL field determines if this spell should affect ALL non-player
characters in the room. Use of this field allows for the creation of some
VERY powerful spells.
The DISPLAY is the display seen by the player when the spell is cast. Note
that if the spell is against a target, the target's name precedes the
display.
The EXP field indicates how much experience is given to the player when
they cast this spell. This field can be negative for loss of experience.
Examine the existing spells for examples of how spells should be created.
Also, remember that items can have spells attached to them, so the
combination of created items and spells can make for a very interesting
world.
CREATING TRAPS ------------------------------------------------------------
A trap is anything that happens to a character when they interact with some
item in the room. A trap can be anything you like, from trap doors, to
sliding panels, to quicksand, to teleporting chairs, etc. In addition, a
trap can be automatic and be triggered on every round that a player stays
in the current room.
Trap creation is a twofold process. First you need to create the trap
definition, and that can be accomplished via the %CREATETRAP command.
Next, you need to modify your room description to contain some reference to
the trap, such that the player is at least given some hint as to what to
interact with. This is an important point -- traps contain nothing but the
implementation, and the description of the trap MUST be contained within
the room text.
Upon issue of the %CREATETRAP command, the follow trap data form will be
displayed:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edit Trap
Use CTRL-W or move beyond first/last field to write. [ESC] to cancel.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Command Set: _____________________ Noun: _______________________________
_______ __________________
Dice roll: _____ + ________
Display as seen by player:
________________________________________________________________________
Display as seen by players in room:
________________________________________________________________________
Loop to command prompt: _
Disarmed: _
The COMMAND SET field contains all possible verbs that the player can use
to active the trap. It can contain multiple verbs, but each verb needs to
be surrounded by a "." to allow Illusions to parse the verb list. Note
that these verbs DO NOT NEED to be part of the Illusion command list, and
anything you like can be here.
Here are some COMMAND SET examples:
.PULL.TWIST.KICK.
.EAT.BITE.SWALLOW
.TAKE.
.SAY.
Illusions also allows "automatic" traps. These traps trigger themselves
every round, and the player does not need to manually activate the trap. A
trap can be made automatic by simply including the ".AUTO." verb in its
command list. Some examples of automatic traps are trap doors, quicksand,
a rushing river, and a falling log.
The next field, the NOUN field, contains the "noun" that Illusions will
look for on the command line. This noun also serves as the tag from which
you can later modify the trap. For instance, if a torch can be pulled to
open a sliding panel, the COMMAND SET and NOUN field might be set as
follows:
command set: .PULL.TWIST.PUSH. noun: TORCH.
Later, if you wish to modify this trap, you can issue the command
"%EDITTRAP TORCH" and the trap data form will be displayed, complete with
the values defining the "torch" trap. The NOUN field can be set to '*' if
you wish any noun to match this trap. For instance a trap with
VERB=".YELL." and NOUN="*" will fire anytime the player yells in the room.
Only the first character in the noun field needs to be a "*" to match
anything. This allows multiple traps in the same room that use a wildcard
noun match since one could have the noun "*1" and the other could have
"*2". Because they are different nouns, editing of the traps is possible.
Beneath the COMMAND SET field lies the unnamed ACTION field. Use this
field to specify what type of action to take on the event of a trap
trigger. This field can contain one of three words: ADD, SUBTRACT, or
REPLACE. This field works in conjunction with the PLAYERS-> and DICE ROLL
field. The PLAYERS-> field contains the player attribute to modify when
this trap is triggered, and the dice roll contains the value to modify that
attribute with. The DICE ROLL field is a standard dice roll, i.e. 1d12+20.
Note that absolute values can be specified by leaving the first field of
the DICE ROLL blank, and just specifying an offset.
The following attributes are allowed to appear in the PLAYERS-> field:
Setting Effect on player Notes
-------- ------------------ -------
HPOINTS Player's current hitpoints Damage
SPOINTS Player's current spell points
LOCATION Player's location Teleportation
GOLD Player's gold
EXP Player's experience
For example, if the ACTION field is "ADD", and the PLAYERS-> field is
"GOLD", and the DICE ROLL field is "1d100+100", then whenever this trap is
triggered the player's gold will be increased by 100 to 200 gold pieces.
And as another example, if the ACTION field is "REPLACE", and the PLAYERS->
field is "LOCATION", and the dice roll field is " +1000", then whenever
this trap is triggered, the player will be teleported to room number 1000.
The next two fields are display fields. The first, DISPLAY AS SEEN BY THE
PLAYER, contains the display that the player will see when they trigger the
trap. If you wish to include the random number generated by the dice roll,
simply include a %D string inside the text, and the %D will be replaced
with the dice roll.
Here is an example: "You sink into quicksand for %D damage."
On this example, the ACTION field is DAMAGE, the PLAYERS-> field is
HPOINTS, and the DICE ROLL field could be anything.
The next display field, DISPLAY AS SEEN BY PLAYERS IN THE ROOM, contains
the display that other people will see when a player triggers a trap. For
instance, in the quicksand example, a useful display string might be "sinks
into quicksand!!!!!". It is important to note that Illusions will preface
the string you type with the player's name who triggered the trip. So if
Frodo triggered the trap, the quicksand example would read "Frodo sinks
into quicksand!!!!!". Optionally, this field can be prefaced with a "%E"
to broadcast a message to all players in the game. For instance, if this
field was "%EThe tower bell rings!", then all players would see "The tower
bell rings!" whenever this trap was triggered.
The next field, LOOP TO COMMAND PROMPT, contains either a T or F. If this
field is true, Illusions will not attempt to parse and execute the command
string, and instead will immediately return to the command prompt after
triggering the trap. If this field is false, Illusions will process the
command line normally after the trap is triggered.
The final field, DISARMED, is another T or F field. When this field is
false, the trap is disarmed and cannot be triggered.
If you wish to list the traps in the current world, use %LISTTRAPS. If you
wish to list all of the traps in the current world, use %LISTTRAPS ALL.
To delete a trap, use the %DELTRAP command with the associated traps noun,
and it will be removed from the current room. An example is, %DELTRAP
leather book.