Doomdark's Revenge

Beyond, 1985

Controls

Note : It is advised that you play this game at the greatest speed possible on your machine, as it will speed it up considerably. To use the save/load features, it is also advised that you use Gerton Lunter's "Z80" emulator, as this has the appropriate features.

Aim of the game

Game play

There are several different victories possible for Luxor:

1. The most basic - rescue Morkin and bring him back to the Gate. The rescue of Morkin is a priority for Luxor; once accomplished the greater victories listed below can also be attempted.
2. Bring other characters to the Gate, notably Tarithel the Fey and Rorthron the Wise.
3. Bring to Varenorn any of the Crowns of Icemark.
4. Retrieve any of the arcane objects on which Shareth's power depends and return them to the Gate. Knowledge of these can be found during your quest.
5. Completely destroy Shareth and her power. If Morkin is slain, this is your only remaining option, although it will be even more difficult for a grief-stricken Luxor. How this can be accomplished you must discover during your travels through Icemark, but be warned, it is no easy task at the best of times.
6. Destroy Shareth and safely return Luxor, Morkin, Tarithel and Rorthron to Varenorn for the greatest victory of all. With this event, the hidden power of the Moonring will awaken, giving Luxor the power to protect Midnight for as long as he lives.

SELECTING A CHARACTER: You initially have just three characters under your control, namely Luxor the Moonprince, Rorthron the Wise and Tarithel the Fey. You can select any of these by pressing the appropriate key. You may not control Morkin until you have freed him from Shareth's spell of enchantment. When selected, the display will switch immediately to that character's point of view.

To select other characters which you have rallied to your cause, you must press the select key and choose the appropriate character. If you control more characters than can be listed on the screen, the message "More..." will appear at the bottom of the display. Press the key marked MORE to view the rest of the list.

CONTROLLING A CHARACTER: Unlike ordinary adventures, DR does not use text descriptions and a parser. Instead, you have four basic options, each available at the press of a single key:

1. Look - you will see a view of the landscape which the character is seeing. During the Look option, you can turn the character to look in another direction by pressing one of the compass keys along the top row of the keyboard.
2. Move - the character will move forward in the direction he was last looking. When he reaches his new location, he will continue looking in that direction and a new panorama will appear. Characters cannot move during night, nor can they move into the Icy Wastes surrounding Icemark. Other factors, such as exhaustion or cowardice, may also restrict movement.
3. Choose - you will be presented with a list of options and the keys you must press to obtain each. The options available will depend upon the situation the character finds himself in but they also reflect the particular personality of the character - so a greedy character will not become generous, for example, nor a coward do brave deeds.
4. Check - there are four things you may check. These are:
   • check place - gives general information - time of day, the place, any objects discovered, etc.
   • check battle - gives details of the last battle or skirmish your character has been involved in.
   • check army - gives details of your own army, any other army in the same location and any army in the location immediately ahead of your character.
   • check person - gives a run-down on the personality of the current character. Beware - some personalities may change as events unfold!

Each character has, for convenience, his own individual "clock" and when he has exhausted his daylight hours, night will fall for him and he will be unable to move again until dawn. Other characters, however, will still be able to move until they have exhausted their hours. Once you have moved all the characters you wish to, you must press the Night key. This ends your turn and signals the beginning of computer controlled characters' movement - in other words, the forces of the Heartstealer and also independent characters. There will be a pause while the computer does this, and rumours of battles and other events may appear on the screen. Soon, however, night will end and the message "Dawn breaks" will appear on the screen.

To begin the new day you must press the Dawn key and then you will begin your next turn. If you do not press the Night key or the Dawn key at the appropriate time, nothing further will happen at all!

BATTLE: Minor skirmishes between individuals can take place at any time and are immediately resolved. Major battles between armies, however, are not decided until the following dawn. You cannot move an army into the same location as an unfriendly army by using the Move key - such a decision is always a special option that you must select from the Choose menu. Some commanders may be so afraid that the option will not appear.

Two options can be used to move an army onto unfriendly soil:

1. Attack - go straight into battle.
2. Approach - go forward under a flag of truce. Using this you may be able to rally the other commander to your cause. However, if he ignores your flag of truce and attacks you anyway, you will be at a disadvantage in the battle.

ICEMARK: The land of Icemark is ruled by five major races:

1. Men - the Iceguard - in the Frozen Empire of the North-East, ruled by Shareth the Heartbreaker.
2. Giants in their North-Western kingdom.
3. Dwarves in their Eastern kingdom.
4. Barbarians in the Outlands of the South.
5. Fey in their Southern Realm.

THE LANDSCAPE: On your travels through Icemark, you will see many different features and structures:

1. Mountain - The hardest and most exhausting type of terrain to traverse, also obscuring anything lying beyond them.
2. City - A fortified city which may house friend or foe; storming a city is a hard task.
3. Forest - Movement through a forest will not be swift, save for the Fey who inhabit the woods.
4. Tower - The Watchtowers of Icemark may hold dark secrets...
5. Pit - By entering pits you may find access to underground passages, but foul creatures may live here. If you find yourself in a tunnel, tall pillars crowned with fire mark the way forward; if there is no way ahead you will only see darkness. Tunnels only lead north, south, east or west.
6. Army - A friendly army offers no hindrance but an enemy army is a very different matter. As you look around during your travels, large figures may appear in the foreground. These are the warriors, characters and creatures that lie immediately ahead of you.
7. Hut - Brief respite can be found here from the cold winds.
8. Hills - Hills slow a traveller and block the view of what lies beyond.
9. Fortress - The stronghold of minor Lords of Icemark, a fortress will offer some protection.
10. Palace - Though not designed to withstand armed assault, a palace is still a centre of power.
11. Temple - The pyramid-shaped temples are apt to harbour dark and mysterious forces. Some give access to underground tunnels.
12. Gate - Set at the entrances of subterranean road, the Gates of Icemark give access to the underworld below.
13. Stones - These mark the route of ancient, forgotten roads. Strange powers - some beneficial, some not - gather about them.
14. Fountain - From a sparkling fountain, the traveller may drink his fill and be refreshed.
15. Icy Wastes - The barrier ice of the Northern glaciers allows no traveller to pass through on the surface. The Icy Wastes are impenetrable to all.
16. Mist - Cold mists block the landscape from view as they roll across the Icemark, summoned by Shareth. All save her Iceguard find their courage and strength sapped if caught in their grip.

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Keys

Move            - Q
Look            - W
Choose          - E
Check place     - R
Check battle    - T
Check army      - Y
Check person    - U
Directions      - 1 to 8        (clockwise round the compass,
going N, NE, E etc.)
Dawn            - D             - ends turn
Night           - F             - begins turn
Select          - M
More            - A
Yes (= More)    - G
No  (= No more) - H
Save            - S             } See note at
Load            - J             } top of text
Luxor           - C
Morkin          - V
Tarithel        - B
Rorthron        - N
Copy            - Z             - Dumps screen to printer