"77 Verbs" by Mathbrush The story title is "77 Verbs". The story author is "Mathbrush". The story headline is "An Introduction to Inform's Standard Verbs". The story genre is "Fantasy". The release number is 2 . The story description is "Use 77 different verbs in your quest to be a parser game PC!" . The story creation year is 2020. Release along with an interpreter and cover art. XYZZYing is an action applying to nothing. Understand "xyzzy" as xyzzying. Carry out XYZZYing: say "You are now Ryan Veeder."; now player's full name is "Ryan Veeder"; now player's forename is "Ryan"; Book 1 - Setup Outside Area is a room. The player's forename is a text that varies. The player's full name is a text that varies. When play begins: now the command prompt is "What is your name? > ". To decide whether collecting names: if the command prompt is "What is your name? > ", yes; no. After reading a command when collecting names: if the number of words in the player's command is greater than 5: say "[paragraph break]Who are you, a member of the British royal family? No one has that many names. Let's try this again."; reject the player's command; now the player's full name is the player's command; now the player's forename is word number 1 in the player's command; now the command prompt is ">"; say "Hi, [player's forename]![paragraph break]"; say "[banner text]"; say "[openingtext]"; move the player to the location; reject the player's command. Instead of looking when collecting names: do nothing. Rule for printing the banner text when collecting names: do nothing. Rule for constructing the status line when collecting names: do nothing. The description of the player is "It's you, [player's forename]!" Rule for printing a parser error when player is in Outside Area: say "The guide glares at you, and you hurry in the doors with the rest."; now the player is in Tutorial Area instead; Chapter 1 - When play begins To say openingtext: say "[paragraph break]Today is your day, [player's forename]! On site at Parser United, wearing your special visitor's badge, you walk among the famous and the infamous. Oooh, look, there's the original adventurer from Adventure! He's sure had a lot of surgery. You gawk at animate marble statues and aqueous balls of slime in their soundstages. A flock of birds dressed as cowboys are shooting ineffectively at each other. A burst of acid gas to your right makes an entire set start to dissolve, and you dodge out of the way as it collapses. You hurry to catch up with your guide. This is it; your day to become an Interactive Fiction PC! You still can't believe that they accepted your application. Of course, you know what to expect; you've read the brochures. An introductory video, some classes spread out over a few weeks. You've got it made. You find your guide, and they usher you towards a low, squat building." Abouting is an action out of world. Understand "about" or "help" as abouting. Carry out abouting: say "Hello! This game was written by Brian Rushton (as Prismatik) and entered into the Second Quadrennial Ryan Veeder Exposition for Good Interactive Fiction. After the Exposition, this game was beta tested by Arthur DiBianca, Daniel Worm, Lance Campbell, FriendofFred and Kenneth Pedersen and entered into Spring Thing as a Back Garden game. This game is designed to use every standard inform verb as listed in the 'command' index in Inform 7. There are only two not mentioned in this game: getting off from something and removing something from something. These actions aren't real actions, as they are more complicated ways of wording 'exit' and 'take'. If you're stuck, don't worry. People will be shouting at you shortly." Chapter 2 - Things Section 1 - Initial inventory The beef jerky is carried by the player. The description of the beef jerky is "It sure was nice of them to give you this hunk of beef jerky!" The indefinite article of the beef jerky is "some". Does the player mean doing something with the beef jerky: it is very unlikely; Instead of eating the beef jerky: say "You try to tear off a strip to eat with your teeth, but it's tough and chewy. Skrit says, 'Ooh, jerky!' and snatches it from you."; now the jerky is nowhere; Chapter 3 - People A shadowperson is a kind of person. A shadowman is a kind of man.The plural of shadowman is shadowmans. A shadowwoman is a kind of woman. The plural of shadowwoman is shadowwomans. Instead of doing something with a shadowperson: say "The crowd is so big that you've already lost them." Instead of doing something with a shadowman: say "The crowd is so big that you've already lost them." Instead of doing something with a shadowwoman: say "The crowd is so big that you've already lost them." The maddening crowd is a backdrop. The maddening crowd is everywhere. Understand "creatures" as the maddening crowd. Instead of doing something with the maddening crowd: say "You don't need to do anything with the crowd."; When play begins: repeat with current running through shadowpersons: now current is part of the maddening crowd; repeat with current running through shadowmans: now current is part of the maddening crowd; repeat with current running through shadowwomans: now current is part of the maddening crowd; The man in the yellow hat is a shadowman. The shadowy person of indeterminate gender is a shadowperson. The crystal goblin is a shadowperson. The twin gaseous beings are shadowpersons. The gnoll is a shadowperson. The sighing child is a shadowperson. The talking rat is a shadowperson. The trench-coated detective is a shadowwoman. The adventurers are shadowpersons. The earnest-looking man is a shadowman. The chorus of voices are shadowpersons. The disgruntled postal worker is a shadowwoman. The fedora-ed detective is a shadowman. The rat in a pirate costume is a shadowperson. The frightened pcs are shadowpersons. The would-be PC is a shadowperson. The prospective PCs are shadowpersons. The apprentice enchanter is a shadowperson. The hitchhiker is a shadowman. The robotic dog is a shadowperson. The hassled barista is a shadowwoman. The elderly monkey is a shadowperson. The newt is a shadowperson. The persnickety librarian is a shadowwoman. The small toad is a shadowperson. The wild witch is a shadowperson. The ugly muffin is a shadowperson. The sonorous monk is a shadowman. The frightened-looking child is a shadowperson. In Tutorial Area is a shadowwoman called the woman with a sandwich. The unhappy man is a shadowman. In the tutorial area is a shadowwoman called the woman in tails. The stout alien is a shadowperson. The man in a giant cat suit is a shadowman. The girl in a dog suit is a shadowwoman. The two guys in tank tops are shadowpersons. The stern-looking dryad is a shadowwoman. The gibbering monster is a shadowperson. The happy baby is a shadowperson. The red-eyed detectives are shadowperson. The mutated dinosaurs are shadowpersons. The disembodied voices are shadowpersons. The thinly disguised metaphors are shadowpersons. The booming voice is a backdrop. The booming voice is everywhere. Instead of doing something with the booming voice: say "The booming voice has no apparent source."; Book 2 - Rooms Outside Area is a room. The description of Outside Area is "A faded sign hangs crookedly on the outside wall: [fixed letter spacing]'To Get Your Bearings In A New Parser Game, Try Typing INVENTORY, X ME, or ABOUT! Try anything else to move on.'[variable letter spacing]"; Looking is outside behavior. Examining the player is outside behavior. Taking inventory is outside behavior. Abouting is outside behavior. Before doing something when the player is in Outside Area: if the current action is not outside behavior: say "You try [current action], but the guide glares at you, and you hurry in the doors with the rest."; now the player is in Tutorial Area; now Skrit is in Tutorial Area instead; Every turn: now Skrit is in the location of the player; Chapter 1 - Main locations Tutorial Area is a room. The description of Tutorial Area is "[first time]This is not what you expected; where's the video? [only]You're standing in a cavernous, abandoned [warehouse] with a dirty, [bare metal floor]. Cables, [pulleys] and [hooks] hang from the [rusted metal ceiling], and what dim light there is is filtered through [dingy plastic sheets] covering [the windows]. A [keypad] is placed high on the wall.[first time] Your group huddles together in the middle of the room. Only you notice your guide slowly stepping towards the door, a smile on his face. When he reaches the door, he clears his throat, and everyone turns. 'I regret to inform you that your applications have been rejected. You will be incinerated shortly. Unless, of course, you can find the code. It ought to be in here somewhere.' ******************************** CUE EVIL LAUGHTER ******************************** He leaves and closes the door, and [flames] spurt from the walls. Everyone panics, except for a gangly alien with the name tag Skrit, who jumps to the keypad and begins typing numbers frantically. 'Hey!' he shouts. 'Help me out here! Try to find the code! EXAMINE everything you can! Or just X it to be faster!'[only]" The warehouse is scenery in Tutorial Area. The description of the warehouse is "You're standing in a cavernous, abandoned [warehouse] with a dirty, [bare metal floor]. [Cables], [pulleys] and [hooks] hang from the [rusted metal ceiling], and what dim light there is is filtered through [dingy plastic sheets] covering [the windows]. A [keypad] is placed high on the wall. Flames are coming from the walls." The bare metal floor is scenery in Tutorial Area. The bare metal floor is a supporter. The description of the bare metal floor is "You find no means of escape in the floor, and no code." The cables are scenery in Tutorial Area. The cables are plural-named. The description of the cables is "The cables loop through holes in the ceiling." The pulleys are scenery in Tutorial Area. The pulleys are plural-named. The description of the pulleys is "The pulleys hold the cables." The hooks are scenery in Tutorial Area. The hooks are plural-named. The description of the hooks is "The hooks hang at the ends of the cables." The rusted metal ceiling is scenery in Tutorial Area. The description of the rusted metal ceiling is "The ceiling is covered in cables, pulleys and hooks." The dingy plastic sheets are scenery in tutorial area. The dingy plastic sheets are plural-named. The description of the dingy plastic sheets is "The sheets of plastic block out all view through the windows." The windows are scenery in Tutorial Area. The description of the windows is "The windows are covered with sheets of plastic." The flames are scenery in Tutorial Area. The flames are plural-named. The description of the flames is "Flames are spurting out all around the room." The keypad is scenery in Tutorial Area. The description of the keypad is "The keypad is far out of your reach." [make descriptions wittier] [handle out of touch stuff] Section 1 - The tutorial room A thing can be codefriendly or not codefriendly. A thing is usually not codefriendly. A thing has a number called the code. The code of a thing is usually 0. Before taking something: if the noun is codefriendly: try examining the noun instead; After examining a codefriendly thing: say "[one of]You shout, 'Hey, let's do [or]You yell, 'Hey! Hey! I got another one! It's [or]You scream 'Hurry! Try [stopping][code of the noun]!'"; now the noun is not codefriendly; now the noun is nowhere; if the number of codefriendly things is 0: say "[line break]Skrit types it and the floor opens with a loud clang, dropping everyone into a pit below. ******************************** THUD ******************************** "; now the player is in Deep Pit; otherwise: say "[line break]Skrit types it in and shouts, 'It doesn't work!' The crowd tears up [the noun] and you keep looking. [one of]A man in a yellow hat shouts 'L KEYPAD!'[or]A shadowy person of indeterminate gender says, 'LOOK CEILING!'[or]A crystal goblin shouts, 'DESCRIBE FLAMES!'[or]Twin gaseous beings shout out 'L AT HOOKS!' and 'LOOK AT HOOKS!' simultaneously.[or]A gnoll says, 'WATCH FLOOR!' while a sighing child says, 'CHECK CABLES.'[stopping]"; [add the above people to be described given time] A dirty yellow sticky note is in Tutorial Area. The dirty yellow sticky note is codefriendly. The description of the dirty yellow sticky note is "A yellow sticky note with a foul-smelling, wet stain. On it is written the number 24601." The code of the dirty yellow sticky note is 24601. A faded ID card is in Tutorial Area. The faded ID card is codefriendly. The description of the faded ID card is "A piece of plastic with the picture and the name faded beyond recovery. The card number was punched directly into the plastic, though. It's 8675309." The code of the faded ID card is 8675309. The pristine sheet of notebook paper is in Tutorial Area. The pristine sheet of notebook paper is codefriendly. The description of the pristine sheet of notebook paper is "This piece of paper ripped from a notebook is in mint condition, its natural grey sheen interrupted only by the gentle blue lines and a hastily scrawled number: 250624." The code of the pristine sheet of notebook paper is 250624. Typing is an action applying to a number. Understand "type [a number]" or "enter [a number]" as typing. Carry out typing: if the player is in Tutorial Area: say "You can't reach the keypad!"; otherwise: say "There's nothing to type on here!"; Examining something is seeking behavior. Looking is seeking behavior. Every turn when the player is in Tutorial Area: if the current action is not seeking behavior: if the player is in Tutorial Area for more than one turn: say "A random would-be-PC shouts '[one of]LOOK[or]L[cycling]!' A booming voice says, 'You can see [list of codefriendly things in Tutorial Area].'"; Before reading a command when the player is in Tutorial Area: if the player's command includes "[number]": say "'No!' shouts Skrit. 'I'm the one typing in the numbers! Just consider them decorative and part of the text adventure ambiance! I need you to EXAMINE more things instead!'" instead; [examining requires light object — looking — — ] Before going down from tutorial area: say "There's no way down!" instead; Section 2 - Deep pit Deep Pit is down from Tutorial Area. The description of the Deep Pit is "You are in a deep pit with [earthen walls]. Tunnels lead in every direction, but you hear menacing barks and growls from those directions. A refuse pile festers in the corner, and a rock shelf juts out from one side of the pit[first time]. Skrit shouts, 'Try to SEARCH for something to use!'[only]." Instead of listening to deep pit: say "You hear barking dogs coming!" The truepit is scenery in Deep Pit. Understand "deep" or "pit" as the truepit. The description of the truepit is "It is, in fact, the pits." Before going up from Deep Pit: say "You can't find a way up!" instead; Instead of going nowhere when the player is in Deep Pit: say "Skrit shouts, 'No! The dogs are coming through those tunnels!'"; The earthen walls are scenery in the deep pit. Understand "dirt" as the earthen walls. The earthen walls are plural-named. The description of the earthen walls is "They are walls. Made of dirt. Not much else, sadly." Some tunnels are in the deep pit. The tunnels are scenery. Understand "tunnel" as tunnels. The description of the tunnels is "Tunnels branch off every which way. The light fails penetrate the darkness between them. Skrit says 'Try to SEARCH for something to use!" There is some skunk bedding. The skunk bedding can be found or lost. The skunk bedding is lost. The description of the skunk bedding is "Augh! This smells horrible! It's a small, soiled blanket with an embroidered picture of a skunk and a tag that says 'This belongs to stinky.'" Understand "nasty" or "small" or "soiled" or "blanket" or "embroidered" or "old" or "tag" or "stinkey" as the skunk bedding. DogsComing is a scene. DogsComing begins when skunk bedding is carried by the player. DogsComing ends when the skunk bedding is not carried by the player. Report taking the skunk bedding: say "Oh no! You forgot that some dogs are actually addicted to the smell of skunk! The dogs are getting closer! Hurry, drop it!" Every turn during DogsComing: say "You can hear the dogs getting closer, attracted by the skunk smell! Everyone shouts at you: [one of]'DROP SKUNK BEDDING!'[or]'PUT DOWN BLANKET!'[or]'DISCARD SKUNK!'[or]PUT SKUNK BLANKET DOWN!'[or]'THROW BEDDING!'[cycling]" The refuse pile is scenery in Deep Pit. The description of the refuse pile is "A wide, low mound made up of trash of every kind. Its odor is indescribable." Understand "mound" or "low" or "trash" as the refuse pile. Instead of searching the refuse pile when the skunk bedding is lost: move the skunk bedding to Deep Pit; now the skunk bedding is found; say "All the adventurers pitch in. A talking rat says, 'LOOK THROUGH PILE,' while a trench-coated detective says 'L INSIDE REFUSE.' The gaseous twins shout 'L IN PILE' and 'LOOK INTO REFUSE' simultaneously. You find something first. Gross! You find a nasty old blanket that stinks like a skunk! The skunk bedding is lying on the ground." The dry dog food is a thing. The indefinite article of the dry dog food is "some". The dry dog food can be lost or found. The dry dog food is lost. The description of the dry dog food is "Small, hard pellets with a muddy brown hue.". The rock shelf is in the Deep Pit. The rock shelf is scenery. The description of the rock shelf is "A long, low shelf of rock.[if dry dog food is found] There seems to be something stuck underneath it.[end if]" Instead of looking under the rock shelf when the dry dog food is lost: move the dry dog food to Deep Pit; now the Dry dog food is found; say "You bend over and look around under the shelf, and spot a handful of dry dog food! Skrit says 'Great! TAKE the dog food and DROP it so we can dodge the dogs!" Before taking the dog food: if the skunk bedding is carried by the player: say "Skrit says, 'You'd better drop that skunk bedding first, so you don't contaminate the dog food!'" instead; Before taking the skunk bedding: if the dry dog food is carried by the player: say "Skrit says, 'You'd better not take the skunk bedding, you'll contaminate the dog food!'" instead; After taking the dry dog food: say "You grab the dog food. Now you can DROP it to distract the dogs!" After dropping the dry dog food: say "You scatter the dog food all over, and the dogs['] voices change from anger to eagerness. Skrit shouts, 'Let's go!' and leads everyone down a small, insignificant crack in the ground. ******************************** DOWN WE GO ******************************** "; now the player is in Gauntlet; Instead of searching the rock shelf: say "SEARCHing might not work, but LOOKing UNDER it could." Before going down when the player is in Deep Pit: say "Skrit shouts, 'Not yet!'" instead; [dropping touchable object — X looking under requires light object — X searching requires light touchable object — X taking touchable object — X taking inventory — — X ] Section 3 - Gauntlet Table of Gauntlet Directions Direction north west inside east outside south up northeast down southeast southwest northwest LastWay is a direction that varies. LastWay is up. RunThisWay is a direction that varies. RunThisWay is north. Before going a direction (called TryWay) when the player is in Gauntlet: if TryWay is northwest: if RunThisWay is not Northwest: say "Thud. 'That's a wall!' shouts Skrit."; say "[line break]"; SkritAdvice instead; otherwise if TryWay is RunThisWay: do nothing; otherwise if TryWay is LastWay: say "'No, we can't go back!' shouts Skrit."; say "[line break]"; SkritAdvice instead; otherwise if TryWay is up: say "Skrit says, 'There's no going back!'"; say "[line break]"; SkritAdvice instead; otherwise: say "Thud. 'That's a wall!' shouts Skrit."; say "[line break]"; SkritAdvice instead; To abbreviate (aim - a direction): if a random chance of 1 in 3 succeeds: choose row with a heading of the aim in the Table of Abbreviation; say "[shortcut entry]"; otherwise: say "[aim]" in upper case; Table of Abbreviation heading shortcut north "N" northeast "NE" northwest "NW" east "E" southeast "SE" south "S" southwest "SW" west "W" up "U" down "D" inside "IN" outside "OUT" Before going RunThisWay when the player is in Gauntlet: if the number of rows in Table of Gauntlet Directions is 1: now the player is in Barricade instead; if the number of rows in Table of Gauntlet Directions > 1: repeat through the Table of Gauntlet Directions: now LastWay is the opposite of RunThisWay; now RunThisWay is the direction entry; blank out the whole row; say "You run [opposite of LastWay]. Now there are exits [ToTheWay] and [LastWay]." instead; break; rule succeeds instead; To say ToTheWay: if RunThisWay is up: say "up"; otherwise if RunThisWay is down: say "down"; otherwise if RunThisWay is inside: say "leading inside"; otherwise if RunThisWay is outside: say "leading outside"; otherwise: say "to the [RunThisWay]"; Every turn when the player is in Gauntlet: if the current action is not going: SkritAdvice; To SkritAdvice: if RunThisWay is outside: say "One PC shouts 'OUTSIDE', while another PC screams 'GO OUT!"; otherwise: say "Another PC shouts '[one of]GO [or]WALK [or]RUN [or][cycling][abbrevRun]!' and disappears towards the room ahead." To say abbrevRun: abbreviate RunThisWay; Before exiting when the player is in Gauntlet: say "An earnest-looking man pushes up his glasses. 'Technically, typing OUT or EXIT is the exiting action, while GO OUT or GO OUTSIDE or just OUTSIDE moves you in the outside direction.'" instead; Gauntlet is down from Deep Pit. The description of Gauntlet is "You are in a [one of]room[or]series of rooms[stopping] with damp, stone walls formed from rectangular blocks. There are exits which lead [RunThisWay] and [LastWay]." [going object —] The damp stone walls made of rectangular blocks are scenery in Gauntlet. The description of the damp stone walls made of rectangular blocks is "The walls seem cut so smoothly, so cleanly...you can't keep from staring at it. The beauty of these damp stone walls is unbelievable. You compose a small poem about them: Gauntlet walls in gauntlet halls you speak to me i love to see gauntlet walls." Section 4 - Barricade TempCell is a room. The Barricade is northwest from Gauntlet. The description of the barricade is "You are in a large room packed full of junk. Debris and random gizmos of every kind are jumbled together in the room[first time]. Sounds of heavy boots and shouting come from the tunnel. The entrance has a metal door that is hanging open. Skrit slams the door shut and yells, 'We have to barricade the door! LOOK AT everything to figure out how you can help!' A bang comes from the doors and they open a crack, straining against the lock. A number of PCs start making a barricade[only]." The heavy metal doors are scenery in Barricade. The description of the heavy metal doors is "The doors are shut, but perhaps not for long!" The metal lock is part of the heavy metal doors. The description of the metal lock is "This lock is holding. But for how long?" The secrettunnel is scenery in barricade. Understand "tunnel" as the secrettunnel. The description of the secrettunnel is "This tunnel leads back where you came from." The metal door is scenery in Barricade. The gizmos are scenery in barricade. Understand "cluttered" or "floor" or "gizmo" or "doodad" or "doodads" as the gizmos. The description of the gizmos is "The cluttered floor has gizmos and doodads aplenty!" Before going southeast from The Barricade: say "The barricade blocks your way." instead; Before opening the metal door: say "The barricade blocks your way." instead; BarricadeProgress is a number that varies. BarricadeProgress is 0. The RealBarricade is scenery in The Barricade. Understand "barrier" or "barricade" as RealBarricade. The printed name of RealBarricade is "barricade". The description of RealBarricade is "A giant mishmash of objects blocks the enemy." The glass fixture is in the barricade. The glass fixture is not portable. The description of the glass fixture is "A fragile glass globe hangs on loose wire from the ceiling. If you break it, the glass shards could stop your pursuers in their tracks!" Understand "globe" or "wire" or "fragile" as glass fixture. The glass shards are scenery. The description of the glass shards is "Sharp, nasty glass shards litter the barricade.". Instead of attacking the glass fixture: say "You smash the glass globe into pieces! The glass shards fly everywhere! A chorus of voices support you:'ATTACK GLOBE! BREAK GLASS! SMASH FIXTURE! HIT WIRE! FIGHT FRAGILE! TORTURE GLASS FIXTURE! WRECK GLASS GLOBE! CRACK FRAGILE WIRE! DESTROY GLOBE! MURDER GLASS! KILL GLOBE! PUNCH IT! THUMP THE GLOBE!'"; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; now the glass fixture is in TempCell; now the glass shards are in Barricade; Shoving it to is an action applying to two things. Understand "push [something] to [something]" as Shoving it to. The printed name of action name part of shoving the desk to the realbarricade is "pushing the desk to the barricade"; The big desk is in the Barricade. The big desk is not portable. The description of the big desk is "[if the big desk is didnotpushed]A massive, heavy desk lies in the middle of the room. If you push it to the barricade, it could reinforce it![otherwise]The desk is already shoved up against the barricade. Nice![end if]". The big desk is a supporter. A thing can be didpushed or didnotpushed. A thing is usually didnotpushed. The beef jerky is didpushed. Carry out shoving: if the noun is the tall bookcase: say "Skrit looks up from ripping old books into shreds and yells, 'This isn't as precise as the desk; if you're going to push it at all, just PUSH BOOKCASE.'"; otherwise if the noun is not the big desk: say "That's not something you need to PUSH TO anything!'"; otherwise: if the second noun is the RealBarricade: if the big desk is didnotpushed: say "A fedora-ed detective leaps up to assist you as you push the desk up against the barricade. Great!"; now the big desk is didpushed; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; otherwise: say "A disgruntled postal worker says, 'You already pushed that! You've figured out this problem, so try messing with something else!'"; otherwise: say "Skrit says, 'What? No, we need it pushed to the barricade!'" Instead of pushing the big desk: if the big desk is didnotpushed: say "Skrit is clinging to the wall. It looks over and says 'Whoa whoa whoa! Don't just push it all over! You need to PUSH THE DESK TO THE BARRICADE!'"; otherwise: say "Skrit says, 'You've already pushed it where it needs to be!'" The tall bookcase is in Barricade. The tall bookcase is not portable. The tall bookcase is didnotpushed. The description of the tall bookcase is "[if the tall bookcase is didnotpushed]A rickety old bookcase towers above you. It wobbles back and forth. One push and it should go down![otherwise]The old bookcase is wedged right into the barricade. Good job![end if]"; Instead of pushing the tall bookcase: if the tall bookcase is didnotpushed: say "You shove the tall bookcase and it smashes down on top of the barricade! Nice job!"; now the tall bookcase is didpushed; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; otherwise: say "A disgruntled postal worker says, 'You already pushed that! You've figured out this problem, so try messing with something else!'"; The heavy drapes are in Barricade. The heavy drapes are not portable. The heavy drapes are plural-named. The description of the heavy drapes is "[if the heavy drapes are didnotpushed]These drapes are huge! You can see, high above, the rod holding them is just barely holding on. You're confident you can knock them down if you pull the curtains.[otherwise]The curtains, rod, and a good amount of masonry lie on the barricade.[end if]". Understand "masonry" or "rods" or "rod" or "curtain" or "curtains" or "drape" as the heavy drapes. Instead of taking the heavy drapes: if the heavy drapes are didnotpushed: say "Skrit says, 'No! PULL them!'"; otherwise: say "Skrit yells, 'No! Leave them on the barricade!'" Instead of pulling the heavy drapes: if the heavy drapes are didnotpushed: now the heavy drapes are didpushed; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; say "You pull with all your might, and the curtains come down, rod and all! Actually, rod and wall; you've ripped out a chunk of masonry with it! PCs jump and leap out of the way."; otherwise: say "'Hey, you already solved this puzzle,' says Skrit as he rallies the troops with a makeshift flag. 'Try something else!' He eats the flag." The wrecking ball is in Barricade. The wrecking ball is not portable. The description of the wrecking ball is "A huge wrecking ball hangs from the ceiling on a sturdy chain. It looks like you can swing it." Instead of pushing the wrecking ball: say "Skrit shouts, 'It needs more momentum! You're going to need to SWING it!" Instead of swinging the wrecking ball: say "You place your palms on the wrecking ball and shove with all your might! The ball swings into the barricade, shoving it further into the entrance and making it more compact[if the wrecking ball is didpushed]. But this doesn't make any difference, doing it more than once[end if]."; if the wrecking ball is didnotpushed: now the wrecking ball is didpushed; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; The barbed mattress is in Barricade. The description of the barbed mattress is "[if the barbed mattress is didnotpushed]This saggy old mattress has innumerable little springs sticking out like wicked barbs. It looks like you could take it and put it on the barricade![otherwise]The mattress is now part of the barricade. Good job![end if]" The little springs are part of the barbed mattress. The description of the little springs is "Pointy!" Instead of touching the little springs: say "Ouch!" Before taking the mattress: if the mattress is didnotpushed: if the mattress is not carried by the player: say "You grab the mattress, and it is surpisingly easy to lift! Now you can put it on the barricade!"; now the mattress is carried by the player instead; otherwise: say "You already have that!" instead; otherwise: say "It's too hard to grab it now; the spikes are everywhere!" instead; Instead of putting the mattress on RealBarricade: say "You shove the mattress on the barricade. Let's see them get past that now!"; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; now the mattress is didpushed; The fire ant bait is in Barricade. The description of the fire ant bait is "The label says 'THIS OUTSTANDING PRODUCT WILL SUMMON FIRE ANTS FROM THE ELEMENTAL PLANE OF FORMIDOPIA! SIMPLY PLACE IN A DARK PLACE!' Skrit looks over and says, 'Hey! You should put that in the barricade!' Then it roars a battle cry and jumps away. You pick up the fire ant bait, ready for action!" The indefinite article of the fire ant bait is "some". Report examining the fire ant bait: now the fire ant bait is carried by the player; Report taking the fire ant bait: say "Now you can put it in the barricade!"; Instead of inserting something into RealBarricade: if the noun is the fire ant bait: say "You shove the bait inside the barricade. Within seconds it goes off, sending [fire ants] swarming over the barricade!"; now the fire ant bait is in TempCell; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; otherwise: say "A squat gnome catches you trying to put that in the barricade, and shakes his head while frowning grimly." The fire ants are scenery. The fire ants are animals. The description of the fire ants is "The fire ants are swarming all over the barricade and through the crack in the door!" The extra large bubble wrap is in Barricade. The extra large bubble wrap is not portable. The description of the extra large bubble wrap is "This is a massive piece of bubble wrap. As you contemplate it, a robot zombie sasquatch shouts, 'HEY! Try to SQUEEZE or SQUASH it!'" The indefinite article of the extra large bubble wrap is "some". Instead of taking the extra large bubble wrap: say "It's too big to move!" Instead of squeezing the extra large bubble wrap: say "You stretch your arms around the wrap and squeeze with all your might! It pops with a loud 'BANG!' and is ripped to indistinguishable shreds! The enemy combatants go silent and hide, mistaking your BANG for a powerful attack!"; now the extra large bubble wrap is in TempCell; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; The tear gas canister is in Barricade. The description of the tear gas canister is "A small metal canister trembling with the incredible pressure of the gas inside.. A rat in a pirate costume jumps onto your shoulder and whispers into your ear. 'Hey, you should THROWING that AT the barricade.' He jumps down and runs away." Instead of dropping the tear gas canister: say "'You need to be more precise,' says the rat, popping up again. 'THROW it AT the barricade." Instead of throwing the tear gas canister at RealBarricade: say "You chuck the tear gas at the barricade and it bursts, releasing massive amounts of tear gas! The clouds are sucked down into the tunnel on their way outside, and you hear gasps and wheezes from the other side."; now the tear gas canister is nowhere; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; Rule for listing nondescript items when the location of the player is Barricade: let N be the number of didnotpushed things which are marked for listing; if N > 0: say "You can see [a list of didnotpushed things which are marked for listing] here."; let M be the number of didnotpushed things carried by the player; if M > 0: say "You are carrying the following useful things: [a list of didnotpushed things which are carried by the player]."; The rusty iron wheel is in Barricade. The rusty iron wheel is not portable. The description of the rusty iron wheel is "A rusty old wheel is set firmly in the wall. It looks like you can TURN it." The portcullis is scenery. The description of the portcullis is "A massive, rusty iron portcullis is embedded in the top of the barricade, leading into the ceiling." Instead of turning the rusty iron wheel: if the rusty iron wheel is didnotpushed: say "With a mighty heave, you turn the wheel. An awful screech echoes through the room; suddenly, a portcullis falls from the ceiling and covers part of the barricade!"; now the portcullis is in Barricade; now the iron wheel is didpushed; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; otherwise: say "Skrit leaps over to help you, but it won't budge! He slaps his forehead and growls, saying 'Of course! You turned it already! Try something else!' and leaps away." Some loose tripwire is in Barricade. The description of the loose tripwire is "A pile of loose tripwire with a few rusty splotches. This would be great to TIE it TO something immobile to trip up the enemy." Understand "pile" or "trip" or "wire" as the loose tripwire. Report examining the loose tripwire: now the loose tripwire is carried by the player; Instead of tying the loose tripwire to a not portable thing: if the loose tripwire is didnotpushed: say "You hurry and tie the tripwire to a handy protuberance on [the second noun]. That'll be a surprise when they get through!"; now the loose tripwire is didpushed; now the loose tripwire is nowhere; now BarricadeProgress is BarricadeProgress plus one; otherwise: say "You feel a tap on your shoulder and see Skrit above your head: 'Hey!' he says, 'You've already tied this!' He chuckles and leaps away." Does the player mean tying the loose tripwire to the barricade: it is very likely; Every turn when the player is in Barricade: if BarricadeProgress is 11: say "Skrit laughs, and says, 'That's it! We've stopped them!' Then a lit explosive is hurled through the doors. There is an explosion, and a sensation of falling. ******************************** EVERYTHING FADES AWAY ******************************** "; now the player is in Blindsided; [Tying it to] [turning] [squeezing] [throwing at] [inserting into] [putting on] [swinging] [pulling] [pushing] [pushing it to] Section 5 - Blindsided Blindsided is a dark room. Blindsided is down from Barricade. Rule for printing the description of a dark room: say "[first time]It's dark when you awake. [only]You can't see anything, no matter how you try. Your other sense might work, though, if you LISTEN or SMELL." After deciding the scope of the player while in darkness: place the location in scope. Visibility rule when in darkness: if listening to something, there is sufficient light; there is insufficient light Visibility rule when in darkness: if touching something, there is sufficient light; there is insufficient light Visibility rule when in darkness: if smelling something, there is sufficient light; there is insufficient light Visibility rule when in darkness: if opening something, there is sufficient light; there is insufficient light Rule for printing a refusal to act in the dark: if we are examining something, say "It's not totally dark here, perhaps, but certainly too dim for close-up examination of anything." instead. Instead of listening to Blindsided: say "You hear the confused cries of a hundred frightened PCs, and the grim mutters of the enemy on the other side of the barricade. An odd whiff of ozone is coming from somewhere, and you hear a rhythmic thumping sound If you LISTEN TO the thumping, or SMELL the ozone, you might be able to tell where it's coming from." The ozone whiff is in Blindsided. Instead of smelling the ozone whiff, say "You sniff the ozone; it seems to be coming from lower down. You crouch down and sniff again. It seems to be coming from the ground. 'Hey everybody!' you say. 'I think there's something under the ground! Everyone FEEL or TOUCH the ground!'" Instead of smelling when in darkness: say "You can smell ozone. It seems to be coming from the ground. 'Hey everybody!' you say. 'I think there's something under the ground! Everyone FEEL or TOUCH the ground!'" The rhythmic thumping sound is in Blindsided. Instead of listening to the rhythmic thumping sound: say "The thumping seems to be coming from...from the ground! You shout, 'The ground! There's something under the ground! Everyone FEEL or TOUCH the ground!"; The ground is scenery in Blindsided. Instead of touching the ground: say "You hear dozens of voices shouting 'I got dirt over here! Nothing here! I found a peanut!' You run your hands over the ground and feel a large hatch that you might be able to OPEN." The large hatch is in blindsided. The large hatch is a closed openable door. The large hatch is down from Blindsided and up from Bunker. "The large hatch is [if the large hatch is open]open[otherwise]closed[end if] on the ceiling." Instead of opening the large hatch: if the large hatch is open: say "It's already open!"; otherwise: say "The hatch creaks open. 'Down here, everybody!' You reach and feel a ladder that you can CLIMB."; now the large hatch is open. Instead of going down from Blindsided: say "Skrit calls out: 'You could trip! You should climb the ladder!' How did he know about the ladder?"; The ladder is in blindsided. Instead of climbing the ladder: if the large hatch is open: say "You carefully climb down the ladder, followed by a horde of PCs."; now the player is in Bunker; otherwise: say "You can't feel any ladder here!" [touching] [climbing] [listening] [smelling] Section 6 - Bunker The description of the bunker is "You are in a clean, bare metal bunker lit by a few small but bright fixtures on the low ceiling. The floor has faint rectangular markings and a few small holes, showing where furniture once rested.[first time] Skrit jumps to the ladder and heaves, rolling it up into the ceiling. 'Hurry, close the hatch!'[only]". The faint rectangular markings are scenery in the bunker. The description of the faint rectangular marking is "They are markings which exhibit a rectangular shape and are faint." The few small holes are scenery in the bunker. The description of the few small holes is "" Before doing anything when the player is in bunker: if the current action is not looking: if the large hatch is open: if the current action is not closing the large hatch: say "Skrit says, 'No! We have to CLOSE the hatch! Hurry!" instead; The bunker floor is scenery in the bunker. The description of the bunker floor is "The floor of the bunker is covered in small holes and rectangular markings." Before closing the large hatch: if in darkness: say "Skrit shouts, 'Not yet!'" instead; Instead of closing the large hatch: say "You grasp the edges of the hatch and slam upwards. It sinks to be flush with the rest of the ceiling and disappears. A warning light flashes, and a robotic voice says, 'Decontamination commencing'. Nozzles begin to spray a fine mist into the room. Skrit's red eyes gleam under his bushy eyebrows. 'Everyone grab their emergency suit from the welcome kit!' He grabs an orange pouch from his pocket and everyone else does the seem. Voices shout: 'PUT ON SUIT! WEAR SUIT! DON SUIT! PUT SUIT ON!' You go to do the same, but you realize you forgot to bring your welcome kit today! Skrit points to the locker and says, 'In there! There might be an extra.'"; now the large hatch is closed; now the large hatch is scenery; Before going up from Bunker: if the large hatch is in Bunker: say "Skrit says, 'No! Close the hatch! CLOSE it!'" instead; Before opening the large hatch when the player is in Bunker: say "It's sunken in in a way that makes opening it impossible." The nozzles are scenery in bunker. The description of the nozzles is "The nozzles are spraying poisonous gas!". The rusty locker is in Bunker. "A beat up old locker is in the corner." The rusty locker is a transparent locked lockable closed enterable container. The rusty locker is not portable. Understand "command" or "center" as the rusty locker. The brass key is in Bunker. "A small brass key lies on the floor." The brass key unlocks the rusty locker. After taking the brass key: say "Yes! The key looks like it fits the rusty locker. Skrit yells, 'Hurry! You need to UNLOCK the LOCKER with that key!" After unlocking the locker with the brass key: say "You unlock the locker. Skrit shouts, 'Now you can OPEN it!'" After opening the locker: say "You open the locker. There is a haz mat suit in the locker."; The haz mat suit is in the rusty locker. "An orange haz mat suit lies slumped on the floor." The description of the haz mat suit is "The haz mat says: Inspected by Daniel Worm." The haz mat suit is wearable. After taking the haz mat suit for the first time: say "You grab the haz mat suit. Skrit says, 'Hurry, put that on!'"; After wearing the haz mat suit: say "You scurry to wear the haz mat suit. You see that everyone else has theirs on now. Something feels off about it. You look down and find a small manual attached to the suit with sticky adhesive. You peel it off and take the book."; now the manual is carried by the player; The alarm is a thing. The manual is a thing. Understand "book" as the manual. The description of the manual is "It's an operations manual. Skrit says, 'You can LOOK UP something IN the manual, or CONSULT the manual ABOUT something, or READ ABOUT something IN the manual, or READ something IN the manual, but whatever you do, hurry! We need to figure out the alarm!" Table of manual topics topic reply "alarm" "[first time]You pore through the book anxiously. You find ALARM, and begin to read: [only][bold type]'To shut off the alarm: You must ENTER the command center, conveniently disguised as a rusty locker. You must then CLOSE and LOCK it from the inside. TURN ON the main power switch. Inside the command center, CLEAN the shutdown panel if there's any dust, and SET the dial TO the number you see. Then TURN OFF the main power switch.' Don't forget to turn off the main power before exiting.'[roman type]" "veeder" "Skrit growls and races towards you, slamming the book shut. 'We don't speak of such things!' he says." "ryan" "Skrit growls and races towards you, slamming the book shut. 'We don't speak of such things!' he says." "skrit" "[bold type]'Skrit can refer to: a species of unknown origin; a former king; and a specific flavor of Chicago-style hot dogs.'[roman type]" Instead of consulting the manual about a topic listed in the table of manual topics: say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". Report consulting the manual about: say "You flip through [the noun], but find no reference to [the topic understood]. Skrit bellows, 'Look up the alarm!'" instead; The power switch is scenery. The shutdown panel is scenery. Understand "display" or "screen" as the shutdown panel. The dial is scenery. The power switch is a device. The power switch is switched off. The shutdown panel can be sucio or not sucio. The shutdown panel is sucio. Before switching on the power switch: if the rusty locker is open: say "'The power switch won't turn on while the door is open,' says Skrit." instead; otherwise if the rusty locker is unlocked: say "'The power switch won't turn on while the door is unlocked,' shouts Skrit from the other side." instead; After switching on the power switch: say "You hear a thrum of energy. It's working! The panel lights up[if the shutdown panel is sucio], but it's too dirty to read. You'll have to CLEAN it or RUB it or POLISH it or SWEEP it or DUST it or WIPE it or SCRUB it[end if]. You hear others shouting: 'TURN SWITCH ON! ROTATE ON SWITCH! TWIST ON POWER! UNSCREW ON POWER SWITCH! SCREW POWER ON! SWITCH SWITCH! SWITCH ON SWITCH! SWITCH SWITCH ON!" Instead of rubbing the shutdown panel: if the shutdown panel is not sucio: say "You've already done that!"; if the shutdown panel is sucio: now the shutdown panel is not sucio; if the power switch is switched on: say "The panel is clean now! It's lit up and says 45."; if the power switch is switched off: say "The panel is clean now, but too dark to see." The description of the shutdown panel is "[if the shutdown panel is sucio]The shutdown panel is too dirty to read. You'll have to CLEAN it.[otherwise if the power switch is switched off]The shutdown panel is clean, but it's blank. You have to TURN ON the power switch.[otherwise]The panel is lit up and says 45."; Switching on something is devicebehavior. Rubbing something is devicebehavior. Setting something to something is devicebehavior. Switching off something is devicebehavior. Understand "door" as the rusty locker. Before entering the locker: if the brass key is not carried by the player: say "Skrit says, 'Wait! You need to grab the key!'" instead; Every turn: if the player is in the locker: now the power switch is part of the locker; now the shutdown panel is part of the locker; now the dial is part of the locker; if the current action is not devicebehavior: say "You can see [a list of things that are part of the locker]."; otherwise: now the power switch is nowhere; now the shutdown panel is nowhere; now the dial is nowhere; The description of the dial is "The dial goes from 1 to 60. You can SET IT to any number." The dial can be confirmed or not confirmed. The dial is not confirmed. Instead of turning the dial: say "You'll need to be more precise. What number do you want to SET it to?" Before setting something to the topic understood: if the noun is the dial: say "You can only set that to a number." instead; Understand "set [something] to [a number]" or "turn [something] to [a number]" as setting it numerically to. Setting it numerically to is an action applying to one thing and one number. Check setting something numerically to (this is the block setting numerically rule): say "[The noun] cannot be set." Before setting the dial numerically to the number understood: if the power switch is switched off: say "The dial won't even turn. It needs power!" instead; if the dial is confirmed: say "It's locked into place. You just have to TURN OFF the power switch."; Instead of setting the dial numerically to the number understood: if the number understood > 60: say "The dial doesn't even go that high!"; otherwise if the number understood < 1: say "The dial doesn't even go that low!"; otherwise if the number understood is not 45: say "You set it to [the number understood], but nothing happens."; otherwise: now the dial is confirmed; say "Bingo! You hear a loud CLICK! Now you can TURN OFF the power switch!"; After switching off the power switch: if the dial is confirmed: now the rusty locker is unlocked; now the rusty locker is open; say "Everything is shutting down! The locker unlocks and pops open again. The nozzles stop spraying gas. You did it! You can EXIT the locker now."; otherwise: say "Everything goes dark, but nothing else happens."; Before exiting when the player is in the locker: if the dial is not confirmed: say "Skrit shouts, 'No! You need to follow the manual first!'" instead; otherwise if the power switch is switched on: say "Skrit shouts, 'Wait! The power is still on! SWITCH OFF the switch!" instead; otherwise if the haz mat suit is worn by the player: say "Your suit is too bulky. Skrit shouts, 'Just DOFF SUIT or TAKE OFF SUIT or CARRY OFF HAZ MAT or REMOVE SUIT or HOLD MAT OFF or SHED HAZ MAT SUIT or DISROBE HAZ or whatever!'" instead; Every turn when the player is in Bunker: if the dial is confirmed: say "Everyone cheers as you exit! They shout, 'Yeah! GET DOWN! GET UP! GET OUT! STAND! STAND UP! LEAVE! OUT!' Your suit, key and manual are taken away. A door opens in the wall. Skrit grabs you from the locker and carries you outside. ******************************** ENTER THE CLEARING ********************************"; now the player is in the Forest Clearing; now the haz mat suit is nowhere; now the brass key is nowhere; now the manual is nowhere; now Skrit is in the Forest Clearing; [Have the artisan remove it from] [entering touchable object — X exiting — — X locking it with touchable object carried object X unlocking it with touchable object carried object X rubbing touchable object — X setting it to touchable object topic X switching off touchable object — X switching on touchable object — X taking off touchable object — X] Section 7 - Forest clearing A thing can be asked or notasked. A thing is usually notasked. The Forest Clearing is a room. The description of the Forest Clearing is "This large clearing is packed with savage PCs of all description: red-eyed detectives, mutated dinosaurs, disembodied voices, thinly disguised metaphors, etc., leaping and howling and surrounding you[if Skrit is notasked]. Skrit stands before you, triumphant. 'The time has come. We are here. Speak, PCs! Show me your worth! ASK me ABOUT anything.' He smiles[end if]." Skrit is a man. Skrit is scenery. The description of Skrit is "Skrit is a long-limbed green goblin." Understand "long" or "limb" or "long-limbed" or "green" or "goblin" as Skrit. After asking Skrit about: if the player is in Forest Clearing: now Skrit is asked; if the topic understood matches "anything": say "He says, 'Ah ha! Very good. I'll tell you about Anything: with me, Anything is possible! 'Now,' he continues, 'TELL me ABOUT yourself.'"; stop the action; otherwise: say "'No! I said ASK me ABOUT ANYTHING[one of][or][or]!' Another would-be-PC shouts 'ASK SKRIT ABOUT ANYTHING!'[stopping]!'"; otherwise: say "Skrit says, 'Not now!'"; Skrit can be answerseeking or not answerseeking. Skrit is not answerseeking. After telling Skrit about: if Skrit is asked: if the topic understood matches "myself": say "You pour out your life story to Skrit, as do several other prospective PCs. Skrit scratches his chin, and says, 'Good, good. Now answer me this: What do you want most?'"; now Skrit is answerseeking; stop the action; otherwise if the topic understood matches "me": say "You pour out your life story to Skrit, as do several other prospective PCs. Skrit scratches his chin, and says, 'Good, good. Now answer me this: What do you want most?'"; now Skrit is answerseeking; stop the action; otherwise if the topic understood matches the player's forename: say "You pour out your life story to Skrit, as do several other prospective PCs. Skrit scratches his chin, and says, 'Good, good. Now answer me this: What do you want most?'"; now Skrit is answerseeking; stop the action; otherwise: say "'No! I said TELL me ABOUT YOURSELF[one of][or][or]!' Another would-be-PC shouts 'TELL SKRIT ABOUT MYSELF!'[stopping]!'"; Table of Skrit's Answers Answerthing "An apprentice enchanter says, 'Skrit, Power!' Skrit nods." "A hitchhiker with a towel says, 'ANSWER LOVE TO SKRIT!'" "A robotic dog barks. Her auto-translator says, 'SHOUT A BONE TO SKRIT!'" "A hassled barista says, 'SPEAK TRUTH TO SKRIT!'" Every turn when Skrit is answerseeking: repeat through the Table of Skrit's Answers: say "[the Answerthing entry][line break]"; blank out the whole row; break. Skrit can be yesseeking or not yesseeking. Skrit is not yesseeking. Understand "say yes" as saying yes. Instead of answering skrit that: if Skrit is not answerseeking: say "Skrit says, 'I will have questions for you to answer later, but not now!'"; otherwise: let bob be the topic understood; say "Skrit says, 'So, the thing you want most is [bob]? Then you shall have it!' The others shout out their desires as well.[line break]"; repeat through the Table of Skrit's Answers: say "[the Answerthing entry][paragraph break]"; blank out the whole row; now skrit is yesseeking; now skrit is not answerseeking; say "Now Skrit asks, 'Are you ready to become true PCs?'" Every turn when Skrit is yesseeking: say "[one of]Everyone shouts 'YES!' or 'Y!' The whole crowd turns to look at you.[or]A person whispers, 'Say YES!'[stopping]" Skrit can be noseeking or not noseeking. Skrit is not noseeking. Every turn when Skrit is noseeking: say "[one of]Everyone shouts 'No!' Then, of course, the whole crowd turns to look at you again.[or]A person whispers, 'Say NO!'[stopping]" Before saying yes when Skrit is yesseeking: say "Skrit nods and the crowd cheers. He continues, saying 'And will you ever go back to the way things were?'"; now Skrit is not yesseeking; now Skrit is noseeking instead; The golden ticket is a thing. The description of the golden ticket is "This ticket has an embossed picture of Skrit and says 'Entry for [player's full name]. WAVE TICKET and GIVE TICKET TO SKRIT to enter the feast!" A thing can be askingready, askingunready, or askinggone. A thing is usually askingunready. Before saying no when Skrit is noseeking: now the golden ticket is askingready; now the golden ticket is carried by Skrit; now Skrit is not noseeking; say "Skrit nods and the crowd cheers. He jumps down and walks through the crowd, distributing tickets." instead; Every turn when the golden ticket is askingready: say "Multiple PCs say, 'ASK SKRIT FOR TICKET,' and Skrit hands tickets out to them." Instead of asking Skrit for the golden ticket: if the golden ticket is askingready: say "You ask Skrit for the ticket. He smiles at you as he hands you yours. 'You did good, [player's forename]. Just WAVE your ticket and I'll know you're ready to go to the feast!'"; now the golden ticket is carried by the player; now the golden ticket is askinggone; otherwise: say "Skrit glowers at you and says, 'Wait until our conversation is over!'"; A thing can be oncewaved or not oncewaved. A thing is usually not oncewaved. Instead of waving the golden ticket: now the Golden Ticket is oncewaved; say "Skrit says, 'Ah, I see it clearly now. Please GIVE me the ticket and go on your way!" Instead of giving the golden ticket to skrit: if the golden ticket is oncewaved: say "You hand the ticket to Skrit and pass on to your reward!"; now the player is in Banquet; now Skrit is in Banquet; now the golden ticket is nowhere; otherwise: say "Skrit looks confused as many PCs rush up to give him their tickets. 'Please, WAVE your tickets before coming forward!' he says." [make sure not to transition back to earlier responses?] [asking it about touchable object topic X asking it for touchable object touchable object X answering it that touchable object topic X getting off touchable object — ? Not necessary? giving it to carried object touchable object X saying no — — X saying yes — — X telling it about touchable object topic X waving touchable object — X ] Section 8 - Banquet and Bonfire The Banquet is a room. The description of the banquet is "The large clearing has been emptied, cleaned, and filled with long tables full of [bread] and [punch]. A pit in the center holds an enormous bonfire, and creatures are eating, drinking, and jumping all around it. A stall [if the lucky kissing stone is in Banquet]is selling a [lucky kissing stone] and cheese.[otherwise]is selling cheese.[end if] There is a huge sign with suggested activities on it." The enormous bonfire is scenery in banquet. The description of the enormous bonfire is "An enormous fire burning in the center of everything." Understand "fire" or "pit" as the enormous bonfire. Instead of touching the enormous bonfire: say "Hot!" The bread is in banquet. The bread is edible. The description of the bread is "Delicious-looking bread." Understand "food" as bread. The punch is in banquet. The description of the punch is "Wonderful-looking (non-alcoholic) punch." Instead of jumping when the player is in Banquet: say "You leap, and dozens leap with you!" Report eating the bread: say "It's amazing! It's delicious!"; now the bread is in Banquet. Instead of drinking the punch: say "It's refreshing! It's soothing!" Before taking the lucky kissing stone: say "The merchant shakes her head and says, 'You have to BUY it first!'" instead; The description of the lucky kissing stone is "It's a smooth and perfectly proportioned stone." Understand "smooth" or "perfectly" or "proportioned" as the lucky kissing stone. The merchant is a woman in Banquet. The merchant is scenery. Understand "mysterious" as the merchant. The description of the merchant is "A mysterious woman is in charge of this stall." The lucky kissing stone is a thing in Banquet. "A lucky kissing stone is displayed at the stall." Instead of showing the lucky kissing stone to the merchant: say "She smiles guiltily." The stall is scenery in Banquet. The description of the stall is "A merchant here [if the lucky kissing stone is in Banquet]is selling a lucky kissing stone and cheese.[otherwise]is selling cheese.[end if]" Every turn when the lucky kissing stone is carried by the player: say "The lucky kissing stone kisses your hand! Short of BURNing it, there's no way to get rid of it!" Instead of buying the lucky kissing stone: if the lucky kissing stone is not carried by the player: say "Skrit tosses you a coin. You hand it to the merchant, who smiles and says, 'Great! It's yours!' You now have a lucky kissing stone! You can KISS it or SHOW it TO Skrit! He'll definitely love it!"; now the lucky kissing stone is carried by the player; otherwise: say "You already bought that!" Instead of dropping the lucky kissing stone: say "You drop the stone, but it comes back to you immediately. So lucky!" Understand "kiss [something]" as kissing. Instead of kissing the lucky kissing stone: say "You feel luck infuse you!" Instead of showing the lucky kissing stone to Skrit: say "Skrit acknowledges you with a smile but backs away slowly." Instead of burning the lucky kissing stone: now the lucky kissing stone is nowhere; say "Oh no! The lucky kissing stone burns away and is gone! How devastating." Instead of inserting the lucky kissing stone into the bonfire: now the lucky kissing stone is nowhere; say "Well, yes, technically that is BURNing it. The lucky kissing stone burns away and is gone. How devastating!" Instead of tasting the bread: say "It has an elegant flavor." Instead of drinking the punch: say "It's watery, but that's what you need right now!" Instead of tasting the punch: say "Refreshing!" Marina is a woman in Banquet. "A woman with a nametag reading 'Marina' is asleep here." Understand "woman" as Marina. The description of Marina is "The name Marina has no real significance here except possibly as a vague and not-well-thought-out Shakespeare reference." Instead of kissing Marina: say "Shouldn't you ask permission before doing that sort of thing? You could WAKE her, though."; Instead of waking Marina: say "She wakes up with a grumble and stalks away. She shouts back at you, 'I was trying to SLEEP! You should try it, too!'"; now Marina is nowhere; Havewaited is a number that varies. Havewaited is 0. Instead of waiting when the player is in Banquet: now Havewaited is 1; say "You are getting very tired now. Every one around you is Z-ing and WAIT-ing. And even you are ready to SLEEP." Slumbertime is a number that varies. Slumbertime is 0. Instead of sleeping when the player is in Banquet: if Havewaited is 0: say "You're not tire yet, but you might be if you WAIT."; otherwise: say "You try to sleep. You hear a nearby newly-minted PC say 'NAP.' But then you realize: you can't sleep. In fact, it's possible you're dreaming right now. It's time to AWAKE or WAKE UP!"; now Slumbertime is 1; The cheese is scenery in Banquet. The description of the cheese is "It looks absolutely odoriferous." A thing can be purchased or not purchased. A thing is usually not purchased. Instead of buying the cheese: now the cheese is purchased; say "The merchant says, 'I'll put it on your bill. You can have a piece! Just CUT it!'" Instead of cutting the cheese: if the cheese is purchased: say "The merchant produces a knife with which you cut the cheese. A distinct odor pervades the area, and even the merchant takes a step back, coughing. You hand back the knife, which she hides. You eat the cheese."; otherwise: say "The merchant shakes her head. 'You didn't BUY it yet!'" Before eating the cheese: say "Skrit shouts, saying, 'You didn't BUY it yet!'" Understand "rock" as the lucky kissing stone. The huge sign is scenery in Banquet. The description of the huge sign is "The sign says: 'Suggested activities! [bracket] [close bracket] BUY a lucky kissing stone! [bracket] [close bracket] CUT some cheese! [bracket] [close bracket] EAT some bread! [bracket] [close bracket] DRINK some punch! [bracket] [close bracket] JUMP! [bracket] [close bracket] TASTE some of the food and drink! Or, if you're sick of it all, just WAKE Marina." Instead of waking up when Slumbertime is 1: say "You find yourself alone in a clearing. To the east is a small, white house..."; repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if the current action is the relevant action entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; end the story finally saying "You are finally a true PC!" [burning touchable object — X buying touchable object — X cutting touchable object — X drinking touchable object — X eating touchable object — X jumping — — X tasting — — X kissing touchable object — X showing it to carried object object X sleeping — — X waiting — — X waking touchable object — X waking up — — X ] Chapter 2 - Background stuff Every turn: if not in darkness: if a random chance of 1 in 8 succeeds: say "[italic type][one of]An elderly monkey says, 'QUIT!' and disappears. A newt says 'Q' and disappears as well.[or]A persnickety librarian shouts, 'NOUNS!' and a small toad says 'PRONOUNS!' A voice booms, saying:[line break][boomaction][or]A wild witch says, 'SCORE!' A voice booms, saying:[line break][scoreaction][or]An ugly muffin says, 'VERIFY!' A voice booms, saying:[line break][verifyaction][or]A sonorous monk chants, saying 'VERSION'. A voice booms, saying:[line break][versionaction][or]A frightened-looking child says 'RESTART' and vanishes.[or]A woman with a sandwich says 'SAVE' in a sing-song voice. She eats the sandwich, then says 'RESTORE.' The sandwich reappears.[or]A dog turns to you, the reader, and says 'SORRY'.[or]An unhappy man shouts, saying 'I hate reading all of this! SHORT!' A woman in tails says scornfully, 'I prefer SUPERBRIEF.'[or]A stout alien says, 'TRANSCRIPT!' A piece of paper appears in its hands that says: '> TRANSCRIPT'. It frowns and says, 'TRANSCRIPT OFF!' and puts it in its pocket.[or]'What?' says a man in a giant cat suit. 'I don't remember what that said. 'VERBOSE!' he says. A girl in a dog suit says, 'Yeah! LONG!'. They look around. 'Nah, I don't like it' says the man. 'Yeah,' says the girl. She shouts, 'NORMAL!' while he shouts, ''LONG!'[or]Two guys in tank tops and holding cash say, 'I need to know the score!' One shouts, 'NOTIFY !', and the other says, 'Yeah, NOTIFY ON!'. A stern-looking dryad says, 'NOTIFY OFF!'[or]A gibbering monster shouts 'THINK!'[or]A happy baby looks at you, and gurgles, 'WAVE!'[in random order][roman type]" To say boomaction: follow the announce the pronoun meanings rule; To say scoreaction: follow the announce the score rule; To say versionaction: follow the announce the story file version rule; To say verifyaction: follow the verify the story file rule; [quitting the game — — X requesting the pronoun meanings — — X requesting the score — — X requesting the story file version — — X restarting the game — — X saving the game — — X saying sorry — — X preferring abbreviated room descriptions — — X preferring sometimes abbreviated room descriptions — — X preferring unabbreviated room descriptions — — X switching score notification off — — X switching score notification on — — X switching the story transcript off — — X switching the story transcript on — — X thinking — — X verifying the story file — — X waving hands — — X ] Chapter 4 - Standard Responses [Change these!] The block vaguely going rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'You'll have to be more specific! You can't just say GO, you have to say where you're going, like GO N or GO S!'" The can't take yourself rule response (A) is "You try to take yourself, and find it surprisingly difficult!" The can't take other people rule response (A) is "Skrit shouts, 'Generally, in games, you'll find it's frowned upon to take other people!'" The can't drop yourself rule response (A) is "Dropping yourself? No thanks." The can't eat unless edible rule response (A) is "Skrit shouts, 'What are you doing? You can't eat that!". The examine undescribed things rule response (A) is "Skrit says 'Looks like the description of [the noun] wasn't coded in!'" The standard looking under rule response (A) is "You don't find anything of interest." The block showing rule response (A) is "[The noun] pays no heed to [the second noun]." The block throwing at rule response (A) is "Tempting, but no." The block attacking rule response (A) is "There is only one place in this tale where violence is required, and this isn't it. At least, not that specific kind of violence." The kissing yourself rule response (A) is "It's awkward, but you manage it." The block kissing rule response (A) is "To be honest, no one is interested in kissing you right now." The block answering rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'That form of address is only useful in extremely specific situations, which you are not in right now.'" The telling yourself rule response (A) is "You find your own conversation exciting and interesting, but now isn't the time to indulge in it." The block telling rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'The time for telling will come, but it isn't now!'" The block asking rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'The time for asking will come, but it isn't now!'" The standard report waiting rule response (A) is "You bide your time." The report touching yourself rule response (A) is "You feel your body. Magnificent!" The report touching other people rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Don't touch the other PCs!'" The report touching things rule response (A) is "Not the time." The can't pull people rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Don't touch the other PCs!'" The can't push people rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Don't touch the other PCs!'" The can't turn people rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Don't touch the other PCs!'" The innuendo about squeezing people rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Don't touch the other PCs!'" The block saying yes rule response (A) is "Quite so." The block saying no rule response (A) is "Well, then." The block burning rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Whoa, whoa, whoa. Time and place, time and place.'" The block waking up rule response (A) is "Until you realize exactly what's going on, it will be too early to wake up." The block thinking rule response (A) is "You've been doing a lot of that recently, and it hasn't helped much." The report smelling rule response (A) is "Skrit's smell is fairly overpowering." The report listening rule response (A) is "You can hear the frantic voices of PCs." The report tasting rule response (A) is "Recently, you've been taking a break from tasting random objects." The block cutting rule response (A) is "You have nothing to cut with!" The can't push unpushable things rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'Whoa! You just tried pushing an object that was flagged as unpushable! Bummer, buddy!'" The can't pull what's fixed in place rule response (A) is "That's not something you need to move that way right now." The futile to throw things at inanimate objects rule response (A) is "You'll only have to throw once in the game and this isn't it!" The can't put onto what's not a supporter rule response (A) is "There's only one time you'll have to put something on something else, and this isn't it!" The parser error internal rule response (E) is "[one of]Skrit looks at you politely, and says, 'You typed a valid action, but it was for something that isn't visible right now, something that isn't in the game, or possibly a typo.'[or]I didn't find the object in that command.[stopping]"; The parser error internal rule response (X) is "You take a look around. [lookaction]"; The parser error internal rule response (N) is "[one of]Your first word had a typo or is one I'm not familiar with. Try a different word.[or]The first word you typed was not recognized.[stopping]"; The parser error internal rule response (B) is "Skrit says, 'Your sentence had too many words.' And he's right: you can try typing just the part where you wanted to "; The parser error internal rule response (C) is "Skrit says, 'Your sentence had too many words.' And he's right: you can try typing just the part where you wanted to (go) '"; The report jumping rule response (A) is "You jump and shout!" The block tying rule response (A) is "You have nothing useful to tie with." The block drinking rule response (A) is "That's not potable." The block saying sorry rule response (A) is "It's quite alright." The block swinging rule response (A) is "That's not really how it works. There's only one thing to swing in this game, and that ain't it." The can't rub another person rule response (A) is "Oh! Perhaps not." The block buying rule response (A) is "You're a little low on funds, buddy." The block climbing rule response (A) is "There's only one thing you can climb in this game, and that ain't it." The block sleeping rule response (A) is "Skrit shouts, 'It's not the right time, yet!" The requested actions require persuasion rule response (A) is "[The noun] pays you no heed.". The carry out requested actions rule response (A) is "[The noun] pays you no heed.". The can't go that way rule response (A) is "Skrit says, 'You can only move in directions listed in the room description! No directions, no moving!'" The block giving rule response (A) is "[The second noun] backs away, saying 'No thanks!'" The can't take people's possessions rule response (A) is "That'd be difficult to do discreetly." The can't take scenery rule response (A) is "Skrit shouts, 'That's scenery! Scenery can't move!'" [Fix 'futile'] To say lookaction: try looking; Chapter 5 - Testing NoScribing is an action out of world. Understand "noscribe" as noscribing. Carry out noscribing: repeat with item running through things: if description of the item is "": say "[item] has no description." Test me with "test tutorial / test pit / test gauntlet / test barricade / test darkness / test bunker /test clearing / test banquet" Test ToBanquet with "test tutorial / test pit / test gauntlet / test barricade / test darkness / test bunker /test clearing " Test Tutorial with "z / l / x index card / x card / x paper / x note / x receipt / x pamphlet" Test Pit with "search pile / take bedding / drop bedding / look under shelf / take food / drop food" Test Gauntlet with "go n / n / go w / go in / go e / go outside / go s / go u / go ne / go d / go se /go sw / go nw" Test Barricade with "break glass / push desk to barricade / push bookcase / pull drapes / swing ball / put mattress on barricade / put bait in barricade / squeeze wrap / throw canister at barricade / turn wheel / tie tripwire to barricade" Test Darkness with "listen / smell / listen to thumping / smell whiff / feel ground / open hatch / climb ladder" Test Bunker with "close hatch / take key / unlock locker with key / open locker / take suit / wear suit / read manual / consult manual about alarm / enter locker / close locker / lock locker with key / turn on switch / rub panel / set dial to 45 / turn off switch / doff suit / out" Test clearing with "ask skrit about anything / tell skrit about myself / skrit, power / yes / no / ask skrit for ticket / wave ticket / give ticket to skrit" Test banquet with "eat bread / drink punch / jump / buy cheese / buy stone / kiss stone / show stone to Skrit / burn stone / cut cheese / taste bread / wake marina / wait / sleep / awake" Chapter 6 - Scoring Use scoring. [removing it from] [getting off] Table of Valuable Actions relevant action turn stamp bonus cheatnumber taking inventory -1 0 0 looking -1 0 0 putting the mattress on RealBarricade -1 0 0 inserting the fire ant bait into RealBarricade -1 0 0 taking the dry dog food -1 0 0 eating the bread -1 0 0 going north -1 0 0 entering the rusty locker -1 0 0 exiting -1 0 0 examining the dirty yellow sticky note -1 0 0 looking under the rock shelf -1 0 0 searching the refuse pile -1 0 0 dropping the dry dog food -1 0 0 consulting the manual about "alarm" -1 0 1 locking the rusty locker with the brass key -1 0 0 unlocking the rusty locker with the brass key -1 0 0 switching on the power switch -1 0 0 switching off the power switch -1 0 0 opening the hatch -1 0 0 closing the hatch -1 0 0 wearing the haz mat suit -1 0 0 taking off the haz mat suit -1 0 0 giving the golden ticket to skrit -1 0 0 showing the lucky kissing stone to skrit -1 0 0 waking marina -1 0 0 throwing the tear gas canister at RealBarricade -1 0 0 attacking the glass fixture -1 0 0 kissing the lucky kissing stone -1 0 0 answering skrit that "power" -1 0 2 telling skrit about "myself" -1 0 3 asking skrit about "anything" -1 0 4 asking skrit for the golden ticket -1 0 0 waiting -1 0 0 touching the ground -1 0 0 waving the golden ticket -1 0 0 pulling the heavy drapes -1 0 0 swinging the wrecking ball -1 0 0 turning the rusty iron wheel -1 0 0 shoving the big desk to the realbarricade -1 0 0 tying the loose tripwire to realbarricade -1 0 0 squeezing the extra large bubble wrap -1 0 0 saying yes -1 0 0 saying no -1 0 0 burning the lucky kissing stone -1 0 0 waking up -1 0 0 thinking -1 1 0 smelling the ozone whiff -1 0 0 listening to the rhythmic thumping sound -1 0 0 tasting the bread -1 0 0 cutting the cheese -1 0 0 jumping -1 0 0 drinking the punch -1 0 0 saying sorry -1 1 0 rubbing the shutdown panel -1 0 0 setting the dial numerically to 45 -1 0 0 waving hands -1 1 0 buying the lucky kissing stone -1 0 0 climbing the ladder -1 0 0 sleeping -1 0 0 quitting the game -1 2 0 saving the game -1 2 0 restoring the game -1 2 0 restarting the game -1 2 0 verifying the story file -1 2 0 switching the story transcript on -1 2 0 switching the story transcript off -1 2 0 requesting the story file version -1 2 0 requesting the score -1 2 0 preferring abbreviated room descriptions -1 2 0 preferring unabbreviated room descriptions -1 2 0 preferring sometimes abbreviated room descriptions -1 2 0 switching score notification on -1 2 0 switching score notification off -1 2 0 requesting the pronoun meanings -1 2 0 pushing the tall bookcase -1 0 0 listening to nothing -1 0 0 smelling nothing -1 0 0 The maximum score is 25. Every turn: repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if the current action is the relevant action entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; if the current action is consulting the manual about a topic: repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if 1 is the cheatnumber entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; if the current action is answering Skrit that a topic: repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if 2 is the cheatnumber entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; if the current action is answering Skrit that a topic: repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if 2 is the cheatnumber entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; if the current action is telling Skrit about a topic: repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if 3 is the cheatnumber entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; if the current action is asking Skrit about a topic: repeat through Table of Valuable Actions: if 4 is the cheatnumber entry and turn stamp entry is less than 0: now the turn stamp entry is the turn count; if the bonus entry is 0: increase the score by 1; Understand "full score" or "full" as requesting the complete score. Requesting the complete score is an action out of world. Check requesting the complete score: if the score is 0, say "You have not yet achieved anything of note." instead. BonusScore is a number that varies. BonusScore is 0. Carry out requesting the complete score: now BonusScore is 0; say "So far you have received points for the following: [line break]"; sort the Table of Valuable Actions in turn stamp order; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 0: if the turn stamp entry is greater than 0: say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 point"; say "[paragraph break]for a total of [score] points. You have also performed the following bonus actions:[line break]"; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 1: if the turn stamp entry is greater than 0: increase BonusScore by 1; say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 bonus point"; say "[paragraph break]for a total of [BonusScore] bonus points."; say line break. Table of Final Question Options (continued) final question wording only if victorious topic final response rule final response activity "Get your FULLSCORE" true "fullscore" get fullscore rule -- "Find MISSING points (if any)" true "missing" get missing rule -- "Find IMPOSSIBLE points" true "impossible" get impossible rule -- "Find all CHARACTERS that are references to other games" true "characters" get references rule -- This is the get fullscore rule: now BonusScore is 0; say "In your final score, you received points for the following: [line break]"; sort the Table of Valuable Actions in turn stamp order; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 0: if the turn stamp entry is greater than 0: say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 point"; say "[paragraph break]for a total of [score] points. You also performed the following bonus actions:[line break]"; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 1: if the turn stamp entry is greater than 0: increase bonusscore by one; say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 bonus point"; say "[paragraph break]for a total of [BonusScore] bonus points."; say line break. This is the get missing rule: say "In your final score, you missed the following: [line break]"; sort the Table of Valuable Actions in turn stamp order; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 0: if the turn stamp entry is less than 0: say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 point"; say "[paragraph break]You also missed the following bonus actions:[line break]"; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 1: if the turn stamp entry is less than 0: say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 bonus point"; say line break. ImpossibleNum is a number that varies. ImpossibleNum is 0. This is the get impossible rule: now ImpossibleNum is 0; say "There is no way to get the following points, as the game does these actions 'out of world':[line break]"; repeat through the Table of Valuable Actions: if the bonus entry is 2: increase ImpossibleNum by 1; say "[line break] [relevant action entry]: 1 impossible point"; say "[paragraph break]For a total of [impossibleNum] impossible points."; This is the get references rule: say "The characters referenced are: The adventurer from Adventure The animate marble statue from Galatea The aqueous ball of slime from Coloratura The flock of birds dressed as cowboys from Birdland The man in the yellow hat from Curious George (not a game) The shadowy person of indeterminate gender from Fallen London The crystal goblin is inspired by A New Life from IFComp 2005, although there is no crystal goblin in that game The gnoll is inspired by the gnoll from the Dragonlance book Lord Toede The talking rat and rat in a pirate costume are both Captain Verdeterre The many detectives are from all of the Infocom and other detective games, with the red-eyed detective being from Make it Good The apprentice enchanter is from Enchanter The hitchhiker is from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radioplay, books, game, and films) The robotic dog is from Rover's Day Out The hassled barista is from the game Tough Beans The sonorous monk is from Vespers The small white house is the opening scene of Zork Everything else is just random/generic weirdness"