Source:Eamon Adventurer's Guild Newsletter, June 1990
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The Eamon Adventurer's Guild Newsletter, June 1990 issue. |
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June 1990 |
| Author |
Eamon Adventurer's Guild; Tom Zuchowski (editor) |
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The Eamon Adventurer's Guild
June 1990
News & Comment
Things Have Been Happening around here since March. First and largest is that I have bought a used IIe (enhanced) with a 1-meg RamWorks III board and a third 5.25 drive. I have retained the II+ for compatibility testing, but otherwise it is retired.
Second, my eldest Disk II got cranky and unreliable, apparently from a noisy tach in the drive motor. This distresses me, as the ol' drive is just a few months away from its tenth birthday and is an old friend. This is probably the source of some compatibility and bad disk problems that I have had with some correspondents in the last few months. I scouted out a used Disk II (with a bad analog board) and used the motor from it to get my drive back on-line in the II+.
Third, I bought Appleworks 3.0. Those of you with Appleworks, take note: I can now handle AWP files as well as regular ASCII files. This newsletter was done with Appleworks and Beagle Brothers' TimeOut SuperFonts.
Fourth, I am coming into some bonus money and got the go-ahead from the Finance Committee (my wife) to get a 3.5 drive. ProDOS and ProDOS Eamon are eating 5.25 disks at an amazing rate (I have nearly doubled my disk storage since it started) and I need to get a handle on it.
What does all this mean? Is DOS 3.3 Eamon coming to a close? Not at all! I still intend to make every Eamon available for use on 48K DOS 3.3 machines. As of this writing I have converted three ProDOS Eamons to DOS 3.3. Unless somebody does one that is so ProDOS specific that it can't be done in DOS 3.3, it will be converted. I can't imagine that happening, however. Eamon's bottleneck has always been free memory, and DOS 3.3 has 10% more than ProDOS does. You would be amazed to see some of the tricks that I had to come up with to convert some of the heavyweight Eamons to ProDOS; we are talking about some serious mangling of the MAIN PGM here! <grin> If not for the ProDOS CHAIN command, many would have been impossible.
Then why bother with ProDOS? Because a lot of people won't use DOS 3.3, in fact won't even try it. They think that DOS 3.3 is as difficult to learn as ProDOS, which isn't true but wins us no new Eamonauts. And many IIgs people will do anything to avoid having to reboot; a holdover, I suspect, from the bad old ProDOS 16 days when a reboot took a long time. Otherwise it doesn't make much sense to refuse to play an hour or two of Eamon because you face a half-minute reboot at the end. However, there are also IIgs people out there who don't even have 5.25 drives, and running DOS 3.3 from a 3.5 drive is not as simple as running it from 5.25s.
Which brings me to another subject: Eamon compatibility. Several people have written that it is a mistake to restrict Eamon to 40-column, upper-case. This has never been so. There are two Eamons in the list that require 80-col. & lower-case, and several more that can display in 80-col. While I have always stressed that you are limiting your prospective audience if you don't go for the lowest common denominator, I have never required that you do so. I want to make this clear right now. If you want to use lower-case text, do it! However, I recommend that you permit 80-columns if you choose to use lower-case, since all II+ 80-column boards can handle lower-case text. Alternatively, you can use the LC/UC converters from the 7.0 DDD, or I would be happy to install them for you if you don't know how. This might be a better solution than requiring 80-col., since the LC/UC converters are easy to install and in this manner you expand the audience for your Eamon. But remember: as always, it's your Eamon, and your decision.
But what about ProDOS Eamon? There is no reason not to use lower-case in ProDOS versions, since the DOS 3.3 version will either be upper-case or else will utilize the LC/UC converters. ProDOS is effectively useless if you don't have LC capability, so we are in little danger of shutting anyone out with LC-only ProDOS versions. I have a single request: I would appreciate it if you did not use lower-case for programming but restricted it to text. Again, this is not required, but it would be a godsend for II+ program spelunkers.
As I am sure you have noticed, this newsletter has a considerably different look from previous issues. This is the doing of the Timeout SuperFonts utility. I was pretty excited about being able to use a proportional font because it is more readable and allows more text per page. But then I found that the originals lost a lot of clarity when photocopied and the resulting end product isn't really much better than previous issues. Utilizing SuperFonts is an extra step that adds considerable time to that required to put together a newsletter, and I am of two minds about continuing to use it in the future. If any of you people out there have opinions about which method you prefer, I would be very glad to hear from you about it, to help me make up my mind. Right now I am favoring a return to the old look but if my mail indicates that this new look is preferred, I will use it instead.
Eamon Adventurer's Guild
Thomas Zuchowski, Editor
Membership/subscription fee for 4 issues:
US-Canada: $7.00; foreign: $12.00; in U.S. funds
The Eamon Adventurer's Guild is published 4 times per year in Mar., Jun., Sep., and Dec.
We are always looking for new material! If you would like to publish your own letter or article in this newsletter, feel free to send one in. If you would like to add your own Eamon adventure to the list, send it on a disk to the above address. It will be assigned an adventure number, and tested for bugs and other problems before release. An informal critique and disk with bug corrections will be returned.
Expiration Date
The usual reminder: be sure to check the expiration date next to your name on the address. If it is JUN 90 and highlighted in yellow, this is your last issue.
Back Issues
Apple-based back issues of the formerly Apple-based NEUC's Adventurer's Log are available from us:
Mar'84, May'84, Aug'84, Oct'84, Jan'85, Mar'85
May'85, Aug'85, Oct'85, Jun'86, Jan'87, Oct'87
EAG back issues: Jun'88, Sep'88, Dec'88, Mar'89, Jun'89, Sep'89, Dec'89
Mar'90
All issues are $2.00 each.
Adventure Updates
You may obtain updated versions of your Eamon adventures from the EAG. Send in a copy of the adventure to be updated and $1.00 per copy to cover our cost, and an updated copy will be returned to you. You must include a copy of every adventure for which you wish an update.
We want to improve Eamon all we can; this includes getting authors to use the latest and best version. Therefore, the version 7.0 Dungeon Designer Diskette and the 7.0 Multi-Disk Supplement may be obtained from us for $1.00 each (US & Canada; foreign $2.00 each).
New Adventures
| 196 | The Cat House | by Anonymous |
| 197 | Star Wars - Tempest One | by S. Averill |
| 198 | Revenge of the Bookworm | by R. Parker |
| 199 | Quest of the Crystal Wand | by R. Davis |
| 200 | The Lost Isle | by R. Davis |
| 201 | The Caverns of Vanavara | by C. Hewgley |
The Cat House is an X-rated foray into yet another house of ill repute. No plot, puzzles, quest, or interesting combat, it is just a series of encounters with women who talk dirty to you. I nearly refused to list it, but if it got out into general circulation, it would mess up the numbering sooner or later.
Star Wars - Tempest One is a very simple adaptation of the movie, reduced to a sneak through an imperial installation and a battle with the Death Star.
In Revenge of the Bookworm, that ol' bookworm is on the loose again in this version 7.0 adventure. Probably Rob's best yet, it is reviewed in this issue.
Quest of the Crystal Wand, a low-difficulty search for the shards of a magic wand, has some decent effects. Reviewed in this issue.
The Lost Isle is a simple "kill-and-loot" scenario. It is a fairly average example of this genre, except that it has crazy room connections that tend to lower its rating and raise the difficulty.
You quest in The Caverns of Vanavara is to rescue the King's daughter from her captors. This 10-direction adventure plays well enough. Be warned: you will be terribly overmatched in the final confrontation, so bring your best "tactical nuke" weapon with you.
Terminological Inexactitudes
Many Eamon players and authors are stunned at the turn Nathan Segerlind has taken since his winning of the first prize in the latest Eamon contest. Those who have had a chance to playtest his latest game, Infernal Revenue Service, are baffled at what has come over him. Instead of ATTACKing someone, you now AUDIT them. And as though this wasn't horrible enough, many feel that the 95% tax fee payable at the end of the adventure is ridiculous.
Nathan, when asked where he gets such odd ideas such as the ones made concrete by his, er, uh, "unusual" Eamon adventures, responded, "I live in the Midwest. I write what I know."
This issue brings us a new contributor. Lurch, sometimes known as Erik Kloeppel, is a shy, reclusive, hermit-like individual contemplating the cosmic all in Key West, FL. The origins of his name are shrouded in antiquity, but might have something to do with his outlook on life, the attitude with which he views the world, or the state he was in when Hokas Tokas first ran into him. After picking himself up, Hokas Tokas is reported to have remarked, "You're not supposed to lurch into my path, you fool!"
Letters
It is my observation over the past few years that the bulk of Eamon reviewers like puzzles, coherency, and complex storylines, while feasts of mayhem, slaughter, and lunacy get the short end of the stick. I'm not saying that mindless hack and slash is necessarily better than other kinds of Eamon, or even equal in most cases, but it has been treated very unfairly.
Although it is true that most Eamons of the "kill 'em all" variety are dull, some are fun because of that. Eamon may not be as graphically violent as arcade games, but it still is fun to hack your way through without having to worry about how some silly thingamajig can be built from parts found in a hardware store!
Humorous Eamons also suffer under normal Eamon standards. Some Eamons that lack in plot or puzzles make up for it with jokes and gags, such as the under-rated The House That Jack Built. This conclusion is made simply because I assume that most people enjoy laughter as well as searching for the answer to some obscure riddle.
I think that reviewers should worry less about "Was the puzzle well clued?" and punctuation than "Did I have a good time playing the adventure?". Yes, it is true that the two previous criteria are important to the last question, but we shouldn't get too caught up in the details lest we lose sight of the big picture. After all, would you rather have a rollicking adventure or sit through a session of Fantasyland History 101?
— Nathan Segerlind
Your point is well taken, Nate. But I feel that I must point out that this is the whole purpose of the EAG Adventure Ratings Poll listed in most issues. If everyone sent in their ratings, they would average out and water down individual likes and dislikes. But as you know, virtually no one ever sends in their ratings, even when they take the time to write to disagree with mine! (Your name is conspicuously absent from those who rated #173.) Consequently, the poll is currently a reflection of my own tastes and those of the people who write an occasional review or test an adventure for me. And reviews must reflect the viewpoint of the reviewer, as you are well aware. That is why I include an "Average Rating" number when the reviewer's rating differs significantly from the average.
— Tom
I think that you should list the names and addresses of people who want to correspond about Eamon and other things in a regular feature.
— Robert Parker
Good idea. Your address has already been published a couple of times, so I won't repeat it here at this time. Beginning with the next issue, we will run a feature that lists all the names and addresses of people who would like to hear from other Eamonauts. If you would like to be listed, let me know.
— Tom
Dungeon Designs
Eamon Coin Tossing — or — Your OS or Mine
as explained by Hokas Tokas to Lurch
Eamon authors and adventurers all have one thing in common: If you want to play, you must play under the old DOS 3.3 operating system. While there is really nothing wrong with this, what if you would rather play under the ProDOS operating system? You are kinda out of luck, aintcha? Not so, Oh tall one! It is unbelievably simple to convert a DOS 3.3 version of a given scenario to ProDOS – even a niffling such as yourself can do it with ease!
But first, why should you convert? To be truthful, there is no adventure oriented reason. A given scenario in ProDOS will appear identical to one under DOS 3.3. But how many adventurers habitually live in the DOS 3.3 world? The advent (no pun intended) (yeah, right) of the Apple IIGS and various program selectors for the rest of the Apple II series, means adventuring in any Eamon world requires that you re-boot the entire system. That's defeating the whole purpose behind the program selectors. However, if you have a ProDOS version of an Eamon adventure, you can simply select the Master Program from within your program selector and be off!
For instance, I play on an Apple IIGS. If I want to play one of the old DOS 3.3 versions, I have to essentially shut the whole thing down, and re-boot on the EAMON MASTER DISK. But, since I have a ProDOS version of the Master, all I need to do is point my mouse at it and "click". Zip, I'm in the Main Hall. From there, it's essentially the same as in the DOS 3.3 versions. Unfortunately, even though I have a ProDOS Master disk, I still need to convert my old DOS 3.3 scenarios if I want to adventure in them. There are other disadvantages to DOS 3.3, not the least of which is it's speed. ProDOS disk access is usually about eight times faster than DOS 3.3.
A thought for future authors: under ProDOS, you could make use of the CHAIN command, which carries variables with it. In other words, under DOS 3.3 you have to write all your variables to a file, RUN the other program, then READ the variables again. Under ProDOS, all you need to do is CHAIN to the next program. The variables will carry over unchanged. ProDOS also offers SAVE and RESTORE commands, which allow you to STORE all your variables in one file, then RESTORE them to a different program – even if your computer has been shut off. (The chain program does this too, but the file created is temporary, internal to the computer, and wiped out when the power goes away. You'll never see it.)
That's neat, but how can I convert the games I already have? Converting Eamon adventures is very easy. In fact, there are fewer than 30 program lines that have to be changed or added. All you need – other than a willingness to type a little – is some way to copy files from your DOS 3.3 disk to a ProDOS disk (I use Copy II+). A program such as Beagle Brothers Program Writer can be handy for this project too, but is hardly necessary.
You start out by formatting a blank floppy for use under ProDOS. I recommend it follow this disk naming convention: EAMON.P.XXX, where XXX is the adventure number. Copy II+ or your System Utilities disk can do this for you. Next, use your copy files utility to copy all the files on the DOS 3.3 disk to the ProDOS disk. Once that is done, put your DOS 3.3 disk away, you're done with it.
Now, set your PREFIX to your ProDOS Eamon disk, and do a CATalog. You should note that most of the file names have been changed, and in some cases, truncated. This is because ProDOS won't allow filenames longer than 15 characters, and won't allow spaces in the filename. Even most punctuation is replaced with periods. This is nothing to worry about, since it's what the conversion is really all about. In fact, the hard part is done.
In point of fact, that is the whole reason behind the rest of this column. Under DOS 3.3, Eamon filenames are full of spaces and special characters but since ProDOS won't allow spaces or special characters in a filename, and limits that filename to 15 characters, several Eamon program lines need to be changed to make the programs run properly. Don't worry, there are surprisingly few, and the conversion is very simple.
The next step is the re-naming of several of the programs, mostly just to make the filenames easier to read. One will Usually be: EAMON.ADVENTURE. This file started life as EAMON ADVENTURE # XXX. I recommend you rename it EAMON.XXX (again, XXX is the adventure number). Another file that usually requires renaming is the description file – For instance: THE MINES OF MORIA will be: THE.MINES.OF.MO. after the file copy process. Needless to say, while that can be understood, it's a bit clumsy. I suggest something like: MINES.OF.MORIA. It's still the same file, but it's a little easier to understand the filename. Of course, there are those description files whose names are just too long to make understandable under ProDOS, but, since it's just a name, we must do the best we can and live with it.
Now you need to create a short program. In fact, one line is all you really need:
100 PRINT CHR$(4)"RUN (description file)"
For Mines of Moria, the program would be:
100 PRINT CHR$(4)"RUN MINES.OF.MORIA"
Save this program under the name LEADIN. This is a must, since both known ProDOS EAMON MASTER disks look for this file. You can add your own embellishments to this program to make things flow more smoothly. For instance, the LEADIN programs I write check for a SAVED game and make provisions to resume it, so they look like this:
100 ONERR GOTO 300
200 PRINT CHR$(4)"VERIFY GAME.VAR":PRINT
CHR$(4)"RUN MAIN.PGM,@29000"
300 POKE 216,0:PRINT CHR$(4)"RUN (intro pgm)
Line 200 checks for the file "GAME.VAR" and if it finds it, runs MAIN.PGM, starting at line 29000 – which is where I generally put the RESUME game routine. If "GAME.VAR" is not found, the description file is run, which in turn passes you to MAIN.PGM – but at the beginning, since you are starting a new adventure.
Now, LOAD the MAIN.PGM and LIST line 130. This line varies greatly from one scenario to the next, but they are all similar. Re-type this line exactly, character for character, except where you see PRINT DK$"READ EAMON.ROOM NAMES,R". At this point, type PRINT DK$"READ EAMON.ROOM.NAME,R". Not much difference is there? But it's enough.
One thing to note: when you list line 130, if you don't see anything resembling EAMON.ROOM NAMES anywhere, take a look at the few lines nearest it in the program. If you still can't find a reference to EAMON.ROOM NAMES, note where any nearby GOSUBs go, and take a look at those line numbers. There have been a few occasions where this part of the line has been stashed as far away as line 37000.
LIST line 1040. Do the same thing, using the filename FRESH.MEAT instead of FRESH MEAT.
LIST line 1060. Notice any similarities to line 130? Right, it looks at EAMON.ROOM NAMES too. Re-type this and change EAMON.ROOM NAMES to EAMON.ROOM.NAME.
LIST line 1050. Does it end with "PRINT DK$"DELETE FRESH.MEAT"? If not, add line 1055:
1055 PRINT DK$"DELETE FRESH.MEAT"
At this point it would be a good idea to SAVE your changes. Nothing is quite so frustrating as spending even as little as 5 minutes on something, only to have it blown away by a random loss of power, or the calculating destructiveness of your local housecat.
This much is fine, and will allow us to play the game, with a little extra typing to get things started, but we still need to address what happens when we successfully complete the quest. So:
First, check to make sure the lines between 2500 and 2900 don't do anything but provide an exit back to the Main Hall. (They shouldn't, it's usually all that's ever there). Now delete them and type in the following listing:
2500 REM >>> RETURN TO MAIN HALL <<<
2510 ONERR GOTO 2530
2520 PRINT DK$"OPEN EAMON.PREFIX":PRINT
DK$"READ EAMON.PREFIX":INPUT PR$:PRINT
DK$"CLOSE": GOTO 2570
2530 POKE 216,0:REM >> ERROR TRAP <<
2540 PRINT DK$"CLOSE":PRINT DK$"PREFIX":
INPUT CX$
2550 PRINT:PRINT:PRINT CX$:PRINT "IS THE
CURRENT PREFIX":PRINT"INSERT YOUR MASTER
DISK AND ENTER ITS PREFIX"
2560 INPUT"";PX$
2570 PRINT DK$"PREFIX"PX$
2580 PRINT DK$"VERIFY MAIN.HALL":POKE 216,0:IF
DIE THEN PRINT DK$"OPEN THE.ADVENTURER":
PRINT DK$"CLOSE":PRINT DK$"DELETE
THE.ADVENTURER":GOTO 2630
2590 IF REC=-1 THEN 2630
2600 PRINT DK$"OPEN CHARACTERS,L150":PRINT
DK$"WRITE CHARACTERS,R"REC:PRINT MN$(0):
PRINT MD%(0,1):PRINT MD%(0,2):PRINT CH:
FOR A=1 TO4:PRINT SA%(A):NEXT A
2610 FOR A=1 TO 5:PRINT WA%(A):NEXT:PRINT
AE:PRINT SEX$:PRINT GOLD:PRINT BANK:PRINT
AC:FOR A=1 TO 4:PRINT WN$(A):PRINT WT%(A):
PRINTWO%(A):PRINT WD%(A):PRINT WS%(A):
NEXT
2620 PRINT DK$"CLOSE":PRINT DK$"OPEN THE.ADVE
NTURER":PRINT DK$"WRITE THE.ADVENTURER":
PRINTMN$(0):PRINT REC:PRINT DK$"CLOSE"
2630 REM >>> RETURN TO MAIN HALL <<<<
2640 PRINT DK$"RUN MAIN.HALL
Save the program again.
Take a look at the SAVE/RESTART routines – usually kept at line 18000 and 29000 respectively. Make sure they don't make use of the old filenames. If they do, they need to be changed. Use lines 130, 1040, and 1060 as examples if you need to. (A better set of ProDOS SAVE/RESTORE game routines should be the subject of a future Dungeon Designs column.)
What about the other programs?
Now, take a look at the remaining BASIC programs on the disk. If you are not sure which they are, simply CATalog the disk and check it out. Every BASIC program will have "BAS" immediately to the right of the filename.
LOAD each remaining BASIC program in turn, and look through it for lines where it makes reference to one of the other files on the disk. In most cases it will be something like this:
20 D$=CHR$(4):PRINT D$"OPEN FRESH MEAT":PRINT
D$"READ FRESH MEAT":INPUT NAME$:INPUT REC:
PRINTD$"CLOSE"
or:
500 PRINT:PRINT"GOOD LUCK, "NAME$".":PRINT
D$"RUN MAIN PGM"
I can't tell you which specific line numbers to change in these cases, since there are nearly as many different line numbers as there are scenarios.
What lies behind all these changes? By now you will have noticed that all this typing (well, most of it) has to do only with those lines that OPEN or otherwise make use of the files on the disk. With this knowledge, you should be able to go through the rest of MAIN.PGM and the other BASIC files and make sure that the filenames – as they appear in the program – agree with what shows up when you CATalog the disk.
That, believe it or not, is all there is to converting the scenarios to ProDOS. It looks more difficult than it really is. In fact, if you intend to convert more than one or two, it might behoove you to use a text editor to pre-type the necessary lines as an EXEC text file, since the applicable lines rarely change. You can even have the Exec file load in your programs for you, and save the program when the changes have been made. Once all the changes have been made to all the programs, you're set! Launch your ProDOS MASTER disk, and go slay a few orcs!
Eamon ProDOS Conversions – Part II
by Tom Zuchowski
Lurch has done a large number of conversions using the method that he outlined in the preceding article. While it should be mentioned that there are no significant differences between my conversion method and Lurch's, his method and mine differ in some minor respects, that I will list here:
1) I don't check for a saved game in the LEADIN pgm, but do this check at Line 20 of the MAIN.PGM, as it is done in the Dos 3.3 version. In my opinion Lurch is "showing off" ProDOS features with this step <grin>. Also, I name the saved VAR file SAVED.GAME instead of GAME.VAR.
2) I do not add line 1055 to delete the FRESH.MEAT file if it is missing. In fact, I REM out line 1055 whenever I find it! I don't see any good reason for deleting this file, as it makes it impossible to start a game over again without returning to the Master to resurrect your character and then launching the adventure all over again, a totally unnecessary procedure.
3) I rename the intro pgm in the format EAMON.nnn.INTRO. Note that we are using a 3-digit convention here, with leading zeroes in 1 and 2 digit Eamon numbers (eg: EAMON.008.INTRO).
4) I delete the pgm EAMON ADVENTURE #nnn altogether. It serves as the HELLO pgm in Dos 3.3 but serves no purpose in ProDOS.
5) I add a short pgm with the name REV.DDMMMYY (where DD=date; MMM=month; YY=year). This pgm has 2 lines:
10 HOME: VTAB5: PRINT"EAMON ADVENTURE #nnn": PRINT: PRINT "(name of adventure)": PRINT: PRINT "BY (name of author)"
20 VTAB15: LAST UPDATE: MM/DD/YY
6) Lurch & I disagree on the subject of error trapping when returning to the Master disk. Lurch believes in handling the errors that don't require too much code, whereas I believe that if you aren't going to trap them all then it is better to let all the errors crash uniformly. My "return" code is:
2500 PRINT DK$"OPEN EAMON.PREFIX": PRINT DK$
"READ EAMON.PREFIX": INPUT PX$: PRINT DK$
"CLOSE"
2510 HOME: VTAB 5: PRINT "(INSERT EAMON MAS
TER DISKETTE, THEN": PRINT " HIT THE 'C'
KEY) ";: POKE -16368,0
2515 GET A$: IF ASC(A$) = 3 THEN PRINT: END: REM
CTRL-C
2517 IF A$ < > "C" THEN 2515
2520 PRINT A$
2525 ONERR GOTO 2510
2530 PRINT DK$"PREFIX "PX$
2540 POKE 216,0: IF DI THEN PRINT DK$;"DELETE
THE.ADVENTURER": GOTO 2900
2550 PRINT DK$"OPEN CHARACTERS,L150": PRINT
DK$"WRITE CHARACTERS,R";REC: PRINT MN$(0):
PRINT MD%(0,1): PRINT MD%(0,2): PRINT CH:
FOR A = 1 TO 4: PRINT SA%(A): NEXT
2560 FOR A = 1 TO 5: PRINT WA%(A): NEXT: PRINT
AE: PRINT SEX$: PRINT GOLD: PRINT BANK:
PRINT AC: FOR A = 1 TO 4: PRINT WN$(A):
PRINT WT%(A): PRINT WO%(A): PRINT WD%(A):
PRINT WS%(A): NEXT
2570 PRINT DK$"OPEN THE.ADVENTURER": PRINT
DK$"WRITE THE.ADVENTURER": PRINT MN$(0):
PRINT REC: PRINT DK$"CLOSE"
2900 PRINT DK$"RUN MAIN.HALL"
7) I am taking the INIT lines at 1001-1038 out of the MAIN.PGM and putting them in a small program named MAKE.FAST.START. This pgm loads EAMON.ARTIFACTS and EAMON.MONSTERS, and STOREs then in a VAR file named FAST.START. I put a line in the MAIN.PGM at 1010 to RESTORE FAST.START, resulting in a lot faster startup. I also write a companion pgm to MAKE.FAST.START named MAKE.ARTS.MONS that will generate EAMON.ARTIFACTS and EAMON.MONSTERS from the FAST.START file for editing. This allows you to delete EAMON.ARTIFACTS and EAMON.MONSTERS to save disk space.
8) Both Lurch & I are using STORE and RESTORE to save and resume games. It is very compact and fast. Here is my code:
18000 REM SAVE GAME
18010 PRINT: PRINT "DO YOU WANT TO SAVE THIS
GAME? ":INPUT "(Y/N) :";A$: A$ = LEFT$(A$,1)
18020 IF A$ < > "Y" AND A$ < > "N" THEN 18010
18030 IF A$ = "N" THEN 100
18040 PRINT DK$"CLOSE": PRINT DK$"FRE"
18050 PRINT DK$"STORE SAVED.GAME"
18080 PRINT: PRINT "THE GAME IS NOW SAVED. RUN
THE PROGRAM NAMED 'MAIN.PGM' TO RESTART
THE GAME."
18090 END
29000 REM RESTORE
29005 POKE 216,0
29010 PRINT: PRINT "DO YOU WANT TO RESUME THE
SAVED GAME?": INPUT " Y OR N:";A$: A$ =
LEFT$(A$,1)
29020 IF A$ < > "Y" AND A$ < > "N" THEN 29010
29030 IF A$ = "N" THEN PRINT DK$"DELETE SAVED.
GAME": RUN
29040 PRINT DK$"RESTORE SAVED.GAME"
29060 PRINT DK$"OPEN EAMON.DESC,L256": PRINT
DK$"OPEN EAMON.ROOMS,L64": PRINT DK$"OPEN
EAMON.ROOM.NAME,L64"
19070 GOTO 100
It should go without saying that you really need a good program editor to do these conversions. Lurch recommends Program Writer. I have been using a ProDOS version of GPLE and have found that GPLE won't do global searches in line numbers over 9999 on my enhanced IIe, so Program Writer is probably the way to go.
Adventure Reviews
#84 Castle of Riveneta
by R. Karsten
Reviewed by Tom Zuchowski
MAIN PGM version: 5
Extra Commands: READ, DRINK
Deleted Commands: none
Special Features: none
Playing Time: 1-1.5 hours
Reviewer Rating: 5.0
Difficulty: 4
Description: "A man tells you of a castle to the north of town which was abandoned by the royal government when the queen mysteriously died in her bedroom. The man gives you a map to the castle, and quickly leaves. You study the map for a while and decide to adventure in the castle."
Comment: This was a fairly average adventure, being neither outstanding nor a stinker. It is strictly a "kill and loot" scenario, and the only puzzles are secret passages and an unusual "elevator" gimmick. I detected a hint of a quest for vengeance against the queen's murderer but it wasn't followed through with. It has 80 rooms and the map had lots of diversity with no problems, although there was never a real castle with such a weird layout. I found a few minor faults. The 60-odd monsters had dead body artifacts, and they all said YOU SEE THE DEAD BODY OF THE (monster). It got boring to fight and kill them with such mundane death scenes to read. Another fault is that many of the monsters are
wild animals that have no business in an abandoned castle. The most notable such encounter was with an angry giraffe in an underground tunnel! Last, there were valuables laying about to be looted in dumb places; for example, a "priceless" Ming vase in a cistern room.
But it was otherwise well built and error free. Hack-&-Slashers should note that it is geared for weapons from Marcos' weapon shop and is a pushover with magic-class weapons. But with a mundane weapon in the 1D8 class, this adventure would be an interesting challenge.
#186 Beginner's Cave II
by John Nelson
Reviewed by Starshine
MAIN PGM Version: 6.2
Extra Commands: none
Deleted Commands: none
Special Features: none
Playing Time: 1 hour
Reviewer Rating: 1.0 Average Rating: 2.0/2
Description: This Beginner's Cave was set up by the Warlord as a service to all free adventurers giving them a chance to try their skills in a not-too-dangerous setting. However, it is really a get rich quick scheme.
Comment: With John Nelson as author, I was expecting an improvement over the original Beginner's Cave but was disappointed. The warning sign read, "For Beginners Only," but I was able to enter with an armor expertise of 10%. The monsters in the cave consisted of the usual rat, troll, and snake, but the wild boar and bull were out of place in a cave. Treasure was misspelled. The Power spell caused an OUT OF DATA error. The action was dull with no exciting Trollsfire type weapons or hidden surprises. The treasures were give-aways with little hazard for the taking. The original Beginner's Cave remains the better of the two for me.
(Editor's comment: the OUT OF DATA error is a bug resulting from an incomplete conversion from Eamon II to version 6.2. See "Bugs 'n Fixes", this issue. Likewise, non-beginners can enter even though it says "beginners only" because I did not add any code to the basic 6.2 MAIN PGM to check for it. In other words, these two items are my fault and not John's. Tom Z)
#198 Revenge of the Bookworm
Reviewed by Tom Zuchowski
MAIN PGM version: 7.0
Extra Commands: PRAY, EAT, SUICIDE
Deleted Commands: none
Special Features: a couple of extended effect sequences
Playing Time: 1 hour
Reviewer Rating: 6.5
Difficulty: 4
Description: This is a sequel to #188 Encounter: The Bookworm. Yes, that ol' bookworm is back with more mayhem! You are working for Hokas Tokas, and when he discovers that you had inadvertently released the Bookworm from his Aquarium prison, guess who gets the job of bringing him back!
Comment: This is a pretty funny adventure; not in the guffaw class but it kept me smiling as I played. It is done strictly for laughs and any resemblance to a "serious" Eamon foray is inconceivable. Robert did some collaboration with Nate Segerlind on this, and Nate is a huge believer in humor in Eamon. It is set in Des Moines and lots of Eamon authors have cameo appearances in the adventure. I had fun figuring out who was who, and if you play much Eamon you should be able to do so, too. However, some of the pot-shots at Eamon authors are very close to being inside jokes, and it is possible that you might be put off if you can't figure out who is getting slammed.
There are few puzzles and they aren't too hard. The fighting is minor and besides the point of the adventure, which is to joke around and have fun. Lots of the descriptions talk to the player rather than to the player's character, much like Hope & Crosby used to talk to the camera in the Road movies. Recommended to those who like funny Eamons and who don't mind silly descriptions.
#199 Quest of the Crystal Wand
by Robert Davis
Reviewed by Tom Zuchowski
MAIN PGM version: 6.0
Extra Commands: none
Deleted Commands: none
Special Features: none
Playing Time: 30-60 min.
Reviewer Rating: 5.0
Difficulty: 3
Description: "You have been summoned to the palace and there told of a powerful magic wand that the city is in dire need of. The council informs you that the wand is composed of 5 parts that do not necessarily look like parts of a wand. The reputed location is known as the Dungeon of Death, given this name by the local widows and orphans. This due to some rumor that their husbands and fathers were lost in these catacombs.
"Your mission is to recover all 5 pieces of the wand (you need not assemble them as this will be done by an expert) and return with them to Sam Slicker. He will give you your reward. If you do not recover all of the pieces, all of the items found in the catacombs will magically disappear and you will not gain any benefit from your trip. Be sure to search everywhere as the pieces are thoroughly scattered about the place."
Comment: The above is the entire text of the introduction. It's a small dungeon, and all puzzles can be easily solved by doing a LOOK in every room. It has some pretty fair special effects as well. This adventure may be appropriate for the skill level of young Eamonauts. If you are wondering, this Robert Davis is not the same Bob Davis who wrote for the NEUC Adventurer's Log and authored the Eamon classics #78 and #121.
Bugs 'n' Fixes
Dungeon Designer Diskette 7.0 MAIN PGM
Date Fixed: 4/28/90
Bruce Bannon sent in a number of fixes for this pgm:
Problem: Inefficient looping
Fix: Add/change these lines:
31050 NA = NZ: FOR A = NZ + 1 TO NZ + 4: INPUT
A$(A),A%(A,6),A%(A,5),A%(A,7),A%(A,8)
31052 IF A$(A) < > "NONE" THEN NA = NA + 1: A%(A,2)
= 2 + (A%(A,7) * A%(A,8) > 25): A%(A,3) = 2:
A%(A,4) = - 1: WT = WT + 2
31054 NEXT: PRINT D$"CLOSE"
31060 PRINT D$"OPEN"ED$",L242":PRINT D$"OPEN"ER$
",L";LR: M%(0,8) = NZ + 1: M%(0,9) = A%(NZ +
1,7): M%(0,10) = A%(NZ + 1,8)
31080 FOR W2 = NZ + 1 TO NA
Problem: Armor & friendliness not set if no shield
Fix: Add/change these lines:
31110 SH = (INT (AC / 2) < > AC / 2): IF SH THEN NA =
NA + 1: SH = NA: A$(NA) = "SHIELD": A%(NA,2) =
11: A%(NA,3) = 10: A%(NA,4) = -999: WT = WT +
10: A%(NA,5) = 1
31111 M%(0,7) = B% + (SH > 0): M%(0,11) = 3
Problem: Development line not deleted
Fix: Delete 31121
Problem: Gold treasure not added to loot total
Fix: In Line 32320, change A2 to A%(A,2)
Problem: Inefficient line
Fix: In Line 33520, change PEEK (105) - PEEK (106) * 256 to A
In addition, these fixes:
Problem: Restarting a game doesn't check for 40/80 columns
Fix: Add this line:
29050 PRINT CHR$ (26)"1": PRINT CHR$(21): HOME: IF CP = 80 THEN PRINT D$"PR#3": PRINT CHR$(12): HOME
Problem: "0 (monster) FLEES" messages
Fix: In Line 333, change PRINT MR" "M$(M)" FLEES" to PRINT M$(M)" FLEES"
Problem: ILLEGAL QUANTITY IN 4710 (if <3>S$ = "S"<1>)
Fix: In Line 4710, change IF RIGHT$ to IF LEN (S$) > 1 AND RIGHT$
#43 Priests of Xim!
Date Fixed: 3/11/90
Problem: Weapon doesn't appear Fix: Replace Line 4210:
4210 IF A = 72 AND NOT AD%(52,4) THEN AD%(52,4) =
RO: PRINT: PRINT "BEHIND THE CHEST, YOU SEE A
BEAUTIFUL GNAVER. IT APPEARS TO BE A VERY
GOOD WEAPON."
Problem: Gold calculations include bank gold.
Fix: In Line 1045, change GOLD + BANK to GO.
In Line 1200, change ((GOLD + BANK) to (GO
#44 Escape from the Orc Lair
Date Fixed: 5/3/90
Problem: bad room connection.
Fix: In Room 10, change N from 10 to 2
#64 Modern Problems
The library copy did not have this problem. The bug reporter did not know where the disk originated from.
Problem: bad room connection
Fix: In Line 12580, change <3>ROOM = -99 <1> to <3>R2 = -99
#84 Castle of Riveneta
Date Fixed: 5/3/90
Problem: SAVE & DRINK commands not available.
Fix: In Line 1910, change 24 to 26
Problem: Don't really sober up after DRINK command.
Fix: In Line 510, change SOBBERED to SOBERED
20040 AD%(33,4) = 0: AD%(47,4) = - 1
Also, the Speedup mods were added.
#108 The Mines of Moria
Date Fixed: 4/8/90
Problem: Use of any spell but BLAST at bridge results in Balrog disappearing, but NBTL does not reset. Fix:
11531 IF ROOM = 68 AND S = 1 THEN GOTO 11533
#114 Thror's Ring
Date Fixed: 3/5/90
Problem: Trashed room files Fix: First, run CHECK FILES to see if your disk has this error. If it does, make a new copy of the disk, copying it file-by-file. Do not make a disk copy. Then enter and run this program to repair the files. (This pgm is not to be added to the disk.):
10 D$ = CHR$(4): PRINT D$"OPEN EAMON.DESC,L256"
20 A$ = CHR$(34) + " THIS ROOM WAS THE DWARVES'
TREASURY, WHERE THEY KEPT THEIR MOST P
RECIOUS GEMS AND WORKED METAL. THERE IS A
DOOR WEST."
30 B$ = CHR$(34) + "YOU ARE ON THE NORTH EDGE OF
THE FOREST LOTHLORIEN. YOU SEE A PLAI
N TO YOUR NORTH, MOUNTAINS TO THE WEST, A
ND THE RIVER ANDUIN TO THE EAST."
40 PRINT D$"WRITE EAMON.DESC,R80": PRINT A$:
PRINT D$
50 PRINT D$"WRITE EAMON.DESC,R81": PRINT B$:
PRINT D$
60 PRINT D$"CLOSE"
#146 The House of Horrors
Date Fixed: 2/20/90
Dan sent in another version of this adventure with some more minor text and pgm mods.
#153 The Lair of Mr. Ed
Date Fixed: 3/11/90
Problem: SYNTAX ERROR IN 106
Fix: In line 106, change I IF to IF
#165 Animal Farm
Date Fixed: 4/18/90
Problem: The FREE cmd crashes if no object is given.
Fix: Add this line: 24005 GOSUB 4900
Problem: If a grenade kills the foe, NBTL is not reset.
Fix: Change this line:
11975 GOSUB 3600: GOTO 300
#166 Storm Breaker
Date Fixed: 3/18/90
Problem: UNDEFINED STATEMENT ERROR IN 9555
Fix: In Line 9555, change 11330 to 11300
#170 Ragnarok Revisited
Date Fixed: 4/18/90
Problem: UNDEFINED STATEMENT IN 500
Fix: In Line 500, change 30000 to 55
Problem: Wrong monster affected
Fix: In Line 32015, change M%(10,5) to M%(9,5)
#179 The Wizard's Tower
Date Fixed: 4/26/90
Problem: doesn't return character to Main Hall properly
Fix: In Line 2550, add the missing colon between PRINT MD%(0,2) and PRINT CH
In Line 2570, change PRINT D$;'WRITETHEADVENTURER" to PRINT D$;"WRITE THE ADVENTURER"
Problem: <3>SYNTAX ERROR IN 120
Fix: In Line 120, change MD%(PRLI to MD%(0,2)
#186 Beginner's Cave II
Date Fixed: 4/17/90
Problem: OUT OF DATA if Power resurrects dead.
Fix: Delete Line 13060
Also, S6 was purged from lines 2540, 2550, 2900
Eamon Adventure Listing
(Note: the articles "a", "an", & "the" are not alphabetized if they come at the beginning of the title)
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