THE MANUAL FOR THE 'DUNGEON MASTER' CHAPTER-1: CHOOSING YOUR CHAMPION Beyond the entrance to the dungeon is The Hall of Champions; contains souls of the champions who perished in the Dungeon. You must choose a party of no more than 4 of these champions to lead into the dungeon. Champions are imprisoned in mirrors along with clothing, weapons and other possessions.To free a champion from the mirror you must move the pointer to the mirror & press the left button.This brings forth a menu which describes the champion's qualities & shows his or her possessions. Each champion is distinquished by the physical attribtes of health, stamina & Mana(magical energy). The value of these attributes is shown in the lower left corner of the menu as 2numbers separated by a /.The first number shows the current level of each attribute. The 2nd number is the max. level. The current level will rise to the max. level as the champion rests & will fall as the champion suffers injury,wields weapons,or casts spells.Each champion also has 3bar graphs at the top of the screen which show the current values for health,stamina, & Mana as a percentage of the max. The champion's possessions are shown as pics inside light grey boxes. Boxes represent space in the champion's backpack, sheath or other places to keep an object. Pick up objects when the pointer is an empty hand by moving the hand pointer over it & pressing the left button. Notice-the pointer changes to resemble object picked up. Now you can move object to another location & place it there by pressing the left button . If the new location is already filled by another object, pressing the left button will swap the object you are holding with the object there.Some boxes represent places where certain objects only will fit. ie. only shoes will fit on your champion's feet. There are 2 special locations shown as an eye & a mouth. Objects may be examined by moving them over the eye & holding down the left button.Objects are eaten by moving them to the mouth & pressing the left button; however, only certain object are edible. A champion may have developed skills as a Fighter, Wizard, Ninja or Priest. You can review these skills by touching the eye with a empty hand & holding down the left button. Fighters: skilled users of heavy weapons & generally have greater physical strenght than other champions. Ninjas: skilled users of precision weapons & are also noted for their thiefly skills & abilities. Wizards: marshall the forces of the magical realm for combat.Priests: are masters of the healing arts, able to use magical energy to create restoring potions & other remedies. Champions also have the additional attributes of strength,dexterity,wisdom, vitality, anti-magic & anti-fire. You review these by touching the eye with an empty hand & holding down the left button. Strength increases striking power of weapons and allows a champion to carry greater loads(ie. armour). Dexterity is the precision with which a champion can wield a weapon & dodge blows.Ninjas possess higher dexterity than other champions. Wisdom affects champion's ability to learn spells & recover Mana. Vitality governs how fast a champion recovers from wounds & resists injury. Antimagic helps resist magic attacks.Antifire helps resist injury from fire. If you resurrect a champion,they return to life exactly as they were before death. Resurrected champions remember skills & abilities of a past life. If you reincarnate a champion,they lose their past memories & skills & take on a new identity. These skills are converted to greater physical attributes. Whether you choose to reincarnate or resurrect a champion,each will be able to learn new skills or improve on existing ones.Fighters & Ninjas gain more fighting ability by fighting. Priests & Wizards gain more magical skill by learning & casting spells. Champions can specialize in one skill or learn a mix of all 4 skill areas. HAPTER-2: CHOOSING THE PARTY LEADER When you have selected at least 1 champion,the pointer changes from a arrow pointer into a hand, whenever it moves into the dungeon view or in near an object box. Hand pointer represents hand of the party leader. The leader's name is always shown in a different color at the top of the screen. The leader is your direct link to the dungeon.The leader can pick up things your party finds, open/close doors, or do other actions in the dungeon. To get a new leader,move pointer until it points to the name of a new leader & then press the left button. To pick up or put down objects, point with the & press the left button. You will not be able to pick up all the objects you cansee in the dungeon, Some objects are too far away. The leader can also throw objects. To throw an object, pick it up & move it to about eye level & press the left button.The object will travel as far as the leader can throw. The leader is throwing, & so gains throwing practice. The leader's hand also moves levers, press buttons,& operate other controls found in the dungeon. To operate a control,the party must stand directly in front of the wall that contains it. You won't be able to reach the control from any other position. Some things,ie. locks,may require a special object, such as a key,to operate them. ie. to open locks you must pick up the right key, move it over the lock, & press the left button. CHAPTER-3: OPERATING THE GAME The game screen is divided into 3 main areas. Info. about your champions in shown at the top. Menus for controlling the game are shown on the right; & the large area at left center shows a view into the dungeon or an inventory for a particular champion. The 4 pics on the right upper corner show top view of the champion's in the dungeon. Each pic indicates position & facing of a champion. The top of the screen is the forward direction.Notice;color of each champion's pic matches the color of his or her bar graph. It is important tp pay attention to how champions are positioned. Champions using swords, or other swung weapons, must be adjacent to threats they are attacking or their attacks will not reach. To switch the position of 2 champions,move the pointer over 1 member of the party & press the left button. The pointer changes to become the champion's pic.Move this figure over the pic of a champion you wish to swap with,press the left button again to make the change. All champions normally face forward. However, when threatned,champions will turn to face the threat. Under these figure lays the name of any object held by a champion. Under that name are the 6 movement buttons-turn & move the party inside the dungeon. The twisted arrows on the upper line turn the party by 90 degrees without moving in any direction.The left & right arrows move the party left & right by one step without changing their facing.the up & down arrows move the party forward & backward one step. You may move or turn the party by placing the arrow over one of the screen buttons & pressing the left button. CHAPTER-4: CONTROLLING YOUR CHAMPIONS Each champion is represented by a box at the top of the screen- shows their name, their status & what they are holding in their hands. The 3 bar graphs show, from left to right, the champion's health, stamina & Mana. When a champion is injured the heath graph will drop. When it reaches zero, the champion will die. When stamina drops below half the champion's carrying capacity will drop. The Mana graph drops as the champion uses up magical energy to cast spells. Each champion has 2 hands.The hand on the left in the "ready" hand.It holds ammunition for range weapons such as bows or crossbows. A range weapon will not work unless the ready hand holds the ammunition it needs.After firing a range weapon,the ready hand will automatically draw new ammunition from the quiver. The right hand is the "action" hand in which the champion normally holds a weapon or other "action" objects.An action object has special abilities.For example,a sword can thrust or a wand may cast magical power. Some actions a weapon or object can do may be beyond the current abilities of a particular champion. ie. a novice fighter may need to practice swinning a sword before he or she can advance to parrying or thrusting.Also,some objects, ie a bow, may require the champion to have another object,(arrow),in the ready hand. Each champion has a action button which shows a pic of the actionobject the champion is holding in their action hand.You press the actionbutton to make the champion do something, such as fighting, with their action object. Note that not all objects are action objects. The action button will be blank if the champion in holding an object which is not an action object. Also, all champions have actions they can perform with bare hands . The action button will show an empty hand when the champion's action hand is empty. When you press a champion's action button you will see the champion's actionmenu for that object. Note that it can vary between champions. CHAPTER-5: CASTING SPELLS Every member of the dungeon party can learn to cast magical spells.However, casting spells requires skill & practice. Spellcasting draws upon magical energy, or Mana, stored in the champion's body. Beginning magic users can hold only limited quantities of Mana & thus can only can low level spells. But, with practice, the novice spellcaster can progress to higher levels. The spellcasting box is above the action buttons on right side of screen.It is actually divided into the 3 different lines or parts.To cast a spell,you must first select which champion will cast. On top of this menu is a series of selector buttons for each champion. Select a new spell caster with the pointer & press the left button. The name of the new spellcaster will then show on the first line of the spellcasting box. The second line in the spellcasting box includes the symbolswhich represent the basic magic syllables of a spell. To prepare spell: magic user recites the syllables that make up the spell by moving the pointer, in turn, over each symbol & pressing left button.As the syllables are recited they appear inside the cast button on the third line,which is the button directly below symbol buttons. Each symbol recited drains the Manalevel of the spellcaster. Note:some symbols require more Mana to recite than others.If the champion's Mana drops too low, he or she may not be able to recite all symbols. Pressing the recant arrow causes the last sylable uttered to be called back & removed from the spell.This may be used to correct mistakes. However, the Mana expended in voicing the syllable is lost. Once a spell is formed,pressing the cast button which is the 3rd line, will cast it forth. A champion may attempt any spell, but beginning spellcasters may not have enough Mana to cast more advanced spells.Also,some spells only work if the champion casting it has the proper experience level.Other spell may require the caster to hold a special object in one of their hands. For example, a spell to create a healing potion requires an empty flask. CHAPTER-6: INVENTORY Each champion has an inventory of items that he / she carries.To select the inv. of a particular champion,move the pointer to the name of the champion shown at the top of the screen & press the RIGHT button. Press the button again to return to the dungeon view. You can also fo go from one champion's inv. to another by moving the pointer to a new name & press the rightbutton again. This is an easy way to transfer objects between champions. Party members may carry objects found in the dungeon. Places witch can hold an object are shown as a box. Some of these boxes represent things which a champion wears. ie, shoes or boots may be placed on a champion's feet. The pouch is a handy spot for small objects. The quiver carries arrows or thrown weapons. The champion's ready hand can automatically draw objects from here to reload during combat. Note:swords & some other weapons will only fit in the first slot. The backpack is general place for storing objects.It has enough room for 17 objects of any size. Should a champion become injured, the box around the injured body part will change to red. The champion's abilities are affected in ways related to the location of the wound. Injuries can be cured by drinking healing potions. Object can be examine by moving them to the eye & pressing the left button. This will show the object's weight & can sometimes reveal otherthings about it. What is revealed depends upon the skills of the champion examining it. Touching the eye with an empty hand shows champion's current attributes & skill levels.The eye works for as long as the leftbutton is held down.A red box around the eye means 1 of the champion's attributes recently changed. Champion can eat food or drink water or potions by moving them to the mouth & pressing the left button. Only edible objects may be consumed. The levels of health,stamina& Mana show more precisely the values indicated by a champion's bar graph for the same things. The left value indicates the current level & the right value indicates the current max. for the champion. Note:as champions advence in level,the max. value will increase.If the Mana max. level increase,ie,would mean that the champion has more Mana available for spell casting. LOAD value printed before the slash is the amount of weight the champion is carrying,represented in kilograms.The 2nd value is the max. weight that the champion can currently carry. If this line is in red,then that champion is overloaded & will move more slowly through the dungeon. Note that the party moves only as fast as its slowest member. Pressing ZZZ button will put the entire party to sleep. Sleeping is a fast way to rest & recover lost Mana health & stamina.The party will sleep until you press the "wake up" button or they are roused by an attack. You may exit the inventory by pressing the right button, or by moving the pointer over the exit box ("X")& pressing the left button. You examine the contents of chests by a champion's inventory menu & placing the chest into the champion's action hand. This opens the chest & shows you what's inside. As long as the chest remains in the action hand, you can add or remove objects. Pressing the figure of the diskette next to ZZZ button will freeze the game & bring up the save-game menu. If you can't finish the game in one sitting (JWX's note: is this A JOKE!?), you may save the current game & resume play later.Saving the game requires a blank formatted disk.Unformatted disk must be formatted before the game can be saved on them.There is a special format button provided for this! CHAPTER-7: GAME HINTS Unlike other dungeon adventure games you may have played, Dungeon Master is a real-time adventure. This means that,just as real time the action doesn't stop while you figure out what to do. Because of this, preparation is all important. Your champions should have their weapons out & ready before they are surprised by hostile creatures.Weapons are only useful in thechampion's action hand,& certain weapons,such as crossbows,require another object,such as an arrow, to be held in the ready hand.(See "Controlling Your Champions" in an earlier section.)If you have extra arrows,they should be kept in your champion's quiver. You champion will then automatically reload after firing the arrow in his or her hand. Practice spells when you have the chance, & learn to prepare useful potions in advance. The more you practice spells, the faster your wizards & priests will grow in abilities.Don't be discourage if spells don't work reliably at first. Start by attempting spell with lower power symbols (NOTE:examine the pic from the disk called DM-Spells!).These spells are easier for novices to cast & work more reliable. However, even if your champion's spell fail, the practice advances his or her level of skill. Also, remember the division of skills for magicusers:creating potions & invoking magical defences requires priestly skills,while most other magical skills are domain of the wizard. Fighters & ninjas need practice,too, it they are to get better at fighting. Try to choose your fights so that your champions have a advantage.This lets your champions gain fighting exparience with less risk of dying.When facing danger, put your strongest champions in front & give them the best weapons. If a champion is using a swung weapon,(sword),he or she must be adjacent to the creature or the attack will not reach.Watch out for attacks from rear & from the sides,& try to keep a retreat path open so you can fall back & let your champions recover. Here is where potions or spells prepared in advance can be real lifesavers! And, if the going gets too rough, run away. Learn to be a careful observer. Sometimes even the tiniest detail is impt. Perhaps a useful object lies just under your nose,or is under anotherobject you ignored. Did you notice the level or hidden switch on the wall you just passed? Sounds can provide important hints too. Did you detect the telltale click of the hidden trap you stepped on?,did you hear the distant rattle of a door opening or closing? Sometimes it may be helpful to compile a accurate map of your surroundings. Maps can help you locate areas of the dungeon you haven't explore yet, or avoid reexploring a place you've already been. Also,a well drawn map can be an invaluable aid to a safe retreat from danger. A map can also help locate traps or solve tricky puzzles; but be warned, even a map can deceive. Conserve your resources whenever possible. Torches only burn when held in a hand. So keep extra torches in a champion's backpack until they are needed. Remember to get fresh water whenever it is available, & grab as much food sa you can get your hands on. Sometimes your only source of food may be the creatures you find & kill, so learn where they hide so you can get to them when you need them.Mana is also an important resource.If you have available Mana, you should use it to prepare potions,heal injured champions, or ready attack spells in advance. And, as mentioned above,practice makes perfect. CHAPTER-8: THE STORY OF THE ORIGINS OF MAGICK What knowledge of Magick we have conforms not to the rules of science, but to the arcane skills & unordered ways of art. Be therefore warned that the path to knowledge is not an easy road. It is said that once, long ago, there was no Magick in the world save the ultimate Magick which giveth life. Later, mankind learned the use of Magick through the control of Mana. This mystical energy is source of all Magical power. Those skilled in the art draw its essence from all things & feel its power as they would feel the wind blow or see the shun shine. But to those unskilled it is unseen, unfelt, unknown. Before you gain knowledge of Magick you must gain knowledge of Mana. This talent can only be a gift gained from another skilled in the arts.For it is truth of Magick that 1 must know Mana to gain Mana.Oncegained,the knowledge lasts forever. Thus have I & others likewise passed the knowledge through generations.With practice & time your own skills can become as great as any who have lived. Know ye that the power of Mana is a power of nature harnessed by the mind. What the mind can conjure,the power of Magick will carry out.Yet,this power is not gained by mere imagining.It requires a knowledge of the true orderof things. Out mind must do more than imagine fire to summon it. It must look beyond & see instead thetrue nature of fire.From this need was born the art of spellcasting. A spell as a visualization & recitation that focuses the mind on a specific task & channels Mana to carry it out. A spell is made of symbols which have both a form & a name.The beginning spellcaster learns to pronounce the name as the symbol is seen in the mind.Each symbol must be recited in the proper order to produce the intended effect.However,Magick is not commanded easily. Even with sufficient Mana & proper recitation,spell may fizzle if the spell caster lacks the experience to cast it. To gain experience, the spellcaster should first master simpler spells before attempting those more difficult. The symbols of Magick are divided into the four known influences of POWER, ELEMENT,FORM & ALIGNMENT (NOTE:examine the pic called as DM-Spells from the disk).It is said that other influences were once known,but only these 4 are remembered today. Each influence is controlled by 6 symbols which represent the 6 basic orders of all things.The 6orders can also be visualized as com- bining the 4 orders of the material plane with the 2 orders of the ethereal realm.each order of each influence is represented by a specific spell-sound & symbol. Lest you be too quick to overstep your abilities, know each symbol recited draws from & depletes the store of Mana carried in your body. The amount of Mana required depends upon the syllables that make up the spell.The 6orders of each influence require differing amounts of Mana to invoke.The influence of power, the weakest order is the syllable LO, & the most powerful is MON. Thus, LO requires the least Mana to cast, & MON the most. In time,your body restores Mana expended in casting a spell by drawning new Mana from the world around. As you gain experience in your craft your body will learn to store more & more Mana. With patience & practice, a skilled user can command enough Mana to attempt the most powerful spells. All spells commence with invocation of power. Influence of power determines the strengh of spells.Choosing a higher power symbol increases the power of the final spell, but also increases amount of Mana needed to invoke other symbols. After power,the influence of element is called upon togive substance to the spell. Element determines the fundamental effect of the spell. Many useful spells require only power & element. The Magick torch spell,usually an app- rentice's 1st, invokes the 1st power & calls upon the element FUL to bring light from fire.As the novice gains experience with this spell, can attempt higher & higher power symbols giving greater & more steady illumination. Adding the influence of form to a spell channels the spell into a specific direction. The invocation of the form KATH, as an example,imparts explosive force to the selected element. Form is not required for all spells, but its influence greatly increases the versality of a spell. The influence if ever alignment connects nature with the world of man: His possessions & his concepts of good & evil. Thus, these influences are less predictable & require a great deal of Mana to control. The novice would be well adviced to leave this influence to the master &the master well adviced to avoid this influence whenever possible. As with all skills,only practice will quide the practioner to higher levels of proficiency. And, only caution will spare him from foolish mistakes.