Player Handbook for Illusions 1.3
Copyright (C) 1993 by Paradox Development Corporation
All rights reserved.
Designed by Kris D'Nal and Andrew Laakmann
Programmed by Andrew Laakmann
INTRODUCTION -------------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to Illusions, the next step in on-line gaming for TBBS systems.
With Illusions you can wander through fantasy realms or futuristic space
ports in the search for adventure and riches. Here, multiple players can
work together or separately to solve complex puzzles and quests -- forming
and shattering allegiances between themselves as the situation demands. In
addition, a complex command base and advanced interface allow extremely
easy play. So get ready, the Illusions are awaiting you ....
CHARACTERS ---------------------------------------------------------------
You are allowed to control one character at a time in the world of
Illusions. Multiple characters can be created, but only one can be
manipulated at a time. At the heart of your character are their
attributes, which govern how your character will fare in matters of combat,
magic, constitution, strength, and speed. These attributes can take values
ranging from three to eighteen, with the middle ranges being much more
common in the world than the extremes. The following attributes define
your character's basic abilities:
Strength (STR) : this defines your character's general strength and
effects things such as maximum carrying weight, damage inflicted upon an
opponent, and likelihood of hitting an opponent.
Dexterity (DEX) : defines the agility of your character. The higher this
score, the more likely you are to hit an opponent and the less likely they
are to hit you.
Constitution (CON) : effects the general fitness of your character. Higher
scores afford your character a longer and healthier life.
Intelligence (INT) : encompasses your characters general mental ability. A
higher value in this attribute is essential for anyone wishing to master
the magical arts.
Wisdom (WIS): determines your character's judgment and enlightenment and
is also essential for the use of magical powers.
Charisma (CHA) : describes how physically attractive (or not) you are to
other players. Higher values in this attribute will afford your player
less expensive purchases since bartering will be easier.
CHARACTER RACE -----------------------------------------------------------
After selecting your character's attributes, race is the next important
consideration. Each of the available races offer different bonuses and
penalties effecting your character's attributes, combat, magic, and hit
points. Selecting the right race and occupation combination that enhances
your character's attributes is essential to successfully play Illusions.
CHARACTER OCCUPATION -----------------------------------------------------
Your character's occupation will control what skill or skills your
character is best and worse at. Your occupation selection should be based
on your character's attributes and race, because a poor combination of
attributes and occupation will doom your character forever. Some
occupations allow the use of magic, some offer superb fighting ability, and
others offer combinations of the two. In addition, certain occupations
allowing magical use are restricted in the type and power of spells that
they may cast
ILLUSIONS COMMAND LINE ---------------------------------------------------
Illusions uses a command line interface, that is, you instruct Illusions
about your wishes by typing a command and pressing return. An interactive
help system is available that can give you information about any command.
To access the interactive help type, "HELP <command>", where <command> is
the command you wish to learn about. To receive a listing of all of the
available commands, type "COMMANDS".
The following commands are recognized by Illusions. Again, type HELP
<command> to find out more information about each.
ACT | ACTION | ALLSCORES | ANNOUNCE
ASK | ASSUME | ATTACK | BRACE
CAST | CHAT | CLOSE | COMMANDS
COMPLETION | CONJURE | DEPOSIT | DO
DROP | EXAMINE | EXCLAIM | FAST
FOLLOW | GET | GRUMBLE | HANDBOOK
HELP | HIT | INVENTORY | JOIN
LOCK | LOOK | MENTION | MUMBLE
MURDER | MYCHARS | NEWCHARACTER | NEWS
OPEN | PARTY | PROCLAIM | PRONOUNCE
PURCHASE | QUEST | QUIT | READY
REMOVE | SAY | SCORES | SCREAM
SELECT | SELL | SHOWOTHERS | SHUT
SLOW | STAT | STATE | STATUS
SUICIDE | TAKE | TALK | TITLE
UNLOCK | USE | VERSION | WEAR
WHISPER | WHO | WHOAMI | WIELD
WITHDRAW | YELL
Movement in Illusions is accomplished by entering one of the six movement
commands : NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, WEST, UP, or DOWN. These commands can
all be abbreviated by typing their first letter. Be warned that not all
paths are two way, and sometimes return to the previous room through
another direction or not at all!
Some commands allow you to view/download information files. The following
commands: QUEST, NEWS, HANDBOOK, and COMPLETION each view an appropriate
information file. To download the file, simply include the DOWNLOAD option
to each call. For instance, to download the quest story line, type QUEST
DOWNLOAD.
In order to make interfacing with Illusions both quicker and more pleasant,
Illusions offers command history and command completion.
COMMAND HISTORY -----------------------------------------------------------
Illusions maintains a list of your most recent commands, and you can
automatically bring up these commands by using the UP and DOWN ARROWS (or
the left and right brackets) to scroll through your history. Use this
feature when performing repetitive commands such as combat or spell
casting.
COMMAND COMPLETION --------------------------------------------------------
A recent improvement in Illusions is its intelligent command completion.
This feature allows you to only type in a few letters of your desired
command, and allowing Illusions to figure out the rest. While this feature
is extremely powerful, to use it successfully you must understand its
limits and capabilities. To read on-line information about completion,
type COMPLETION at the command line.
The completion is divided into two parts, verb and noun. If you are typing
the first word of your command, Illusions assumes you would like to
complete with one of the known verb commands in its database. Completion
is accomplished by pressing the <TAB> key while typing the word or phrase
you wish to complete. For instance,
Command: INV<TAB> { would type INVENTORY }
Command: SU<TAB> { would type SUICIDE }
If Illusions cannot completely figure out which word you wish to have it
complete with, it will complete as much as it can, and then beep. For
instance,
Command: AC<TAB> { would type ACT and then beep (ACT or ACTION)}
Command: ST<TAB> { would type STAT and then beep (STAT or STATUS)}
If you are not typing the first word of your command, Illusion assumes you
would like to complete with a noun. Rather than remember all of the
possible nouns in the system (which is alot!), Illusions remembers the last
40 or so nouns displayed or referenced. This allows faster look up and
offers better completion since the chance of two words being close enough
to cause a beep is lowered. A displayed noun is a player, monster, item,
or door that has appeared in a room description. A referenced noun is one
that you have typed in previously within a command. For instance,
Command: ATTACK FR<TAB> { would type ATTACK FRODO }
Command: GET LON<TAB> {would type GET LONG SWORD }
Command: OPEN WOO<TAB> {would type OPEN WOODEN DOOR}
For the previous completions to work, the example nouns would need to have
appeared or have been referenced recently.
If Illusions doesn't seem to want to complete on a noun that it usually
can, it is probably because that noun has been pushed out of its most
"recent 40 noun" list. Just type the noun again and it will be in its
completion list again.
Remember, if Illusions beeps while completing, it means that it needs more
letters to fully complete your desired command. Just type a few more
letters and hit <TAB> again.
Experiment with completion and you'll quickly figure out how it works and
realize what a big time saver it is while playing Illusions!