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Bard's Tale 2 Manual

Bard's Tale II:

The Destiny Knight

from Electronic Arts

Bigger and better than The Bard's Tale!

GREETINGS HERO!

My name is Saradon, a wizard of some fame and little fortune. Though you
know me not, and we have never met, I feel that I have known you all my
life. For the story of your deeds, your entanglement with Mangar and his
evil horde in Skara Brae, flows from the lips of every Bard throughout
the Realm. For this reason, your courage and experience, I have
contacted you above all others. For now we face an evil much greater
than Mangar's. An evil that threatens not the safety and tranquillity of
but one city, nae ... an evil that threatens the existence of the entire
Realm and all the cities and citizens within!

Recall now the lessons of your childhood. The story of Turin, the
archmage who forged the Destiny Wand in the molten depths of the holy
mountain Krontor. The Destiny Wand, the uniting force which has rallied
armies to the aid of the Realm, and has maintained peace and prosperity
for the last 700 years. But look around you now, where has the power of
the Destiny Wand gone? Lawless mercenaries from the neighboring kingdom
of Lestradae have invaded the Realm and now run rampant through the
streets. Even in Tangramayne, our capital! It is they who have taken the
Destiny Wand, with the guidance of an evil Archmage known as Lagoth
Zanta.

Although Lagoth has thwarted each of my attempts to gain knowledge of
his powers and location, I have been able to discover that the Destiny
Wand lies broken in seven pieces, at seven different locations. Lagoth
has placed each fragment of the scepter within a Snare of Death - a
puzzle room that will require all the wisdom and cunning at your
disposal in order for you to survive.

Do you believe in legends? Legend states that, "Unimaginable power is
bestowed upon the one who reforges the Destiny Wand ..." Regardless of
whether or not you hold faith in the stuff of legend, you must defeat
Lagoth Zanta, regain the seven fragments, and reforge the Destiny Wand
-- it is the only way to save the Realm.

Now I must hurry, for in my attempts to glean knowledge of Lagoth, he
must has discovered my prying magic and even how his mercenaries
approach. I care not for my own safety, but I pray that my magic is
still strong enough to deliver this letter and the accompanying booklet
into your hands. The booklet contains powerful quest knowledge which I
have gathered using magic and other, more physical, methods. Use it to
help you during your quest. My only regret is that I cannot personally
be there to counsel you during your quest. May fate smile upon you...
and upon me.

Saradon


OBJECTIVE AND OVERVIEW

This section contains a description of your objective while playing The
Destiny Knight, and an overview of the game for players who want to get
started quickly. The rest of the manual contains reference information
on various game aspects such as buildings and developing characters,
finding and mapping the many different locations within the game, and
using the combat and magic systems.

Objective

As The Destiny Knight, you must assemble a band of adventurers, track
down the seven pieces of the Destiny Wand, and defeat the evil Archmage,
Lagoth Zanta. Once you have defeated the evil Archmage and have managed
to collect all seven fragments of the Destiny Wand, you must reforge the
scepter into a unified whole, thus reunifying the Realm (and winning the
game).

Beginning and Experienced Players

If this is your first time in the Realm of the Bard, you should read the
whole manual carefully, then keep it handy for reference during game
play. If you're a Bard's Tale veteran, the Command Summary Card probably
contains all the information you'll need to get started, but keep the
manual nearby for reference. Because although The Destiny Knight
software operates almost identically to the Bard's Tale, the game itself
is more complex.

Beginners: The adventurer starts at the Adventurer's Guild in the
Realm's capital city, Tangramayne (see illustration below). If you are
using first level characters (as new players probably will) proceed
immediately to the starter dungeon. The starter dungeon gives your
characters some initial experience points and helps them prepare for the
more perilous adventurers that lie outside Tangramayne's walls. It's
very important for beginning players to get to the starter dungeon as
quickly as possible, because characters lower than level 14 aren't
likely to survive for very long anywhere else in the game.

Veterans: If you're an experienced player with a band of strong
adventurers (higher than level 14) transferred from Bard's Tale,
Wizardry, or Ultima III, you can set out in search of the Destiny Wand
immediately. The first step for any player, however, is to start the
game using the instructions on the Command Summary Card. Once you have
entered the game and have left Tangramayne, locate the Sage in the
wilderness and ask him about the Tombs. (See "The Sage" below for more
information.)

Map of Tangramayne

#######I######## D = Starter Dungeon
T # B = Bank
# ##### #####T # C = Casino
# # # # E = Energy Emporium
# # ##B ## # # # G = Adventurer's Guild
# # # # # # # I = Inn or Tavern
# # # ## E # # # R = Review Board
G # ## # I # D S = Shoppe
# # # #C # # # # T = Temple
# S # ## # # # #
# # # # # # #
# # ### ## R # C
# # # #
# ####T ###### #
# #
########I#######


Command Summary Card

Follow the instructions on the Command Summary Card to start The Destiny
Knight on your computer and to learn the keystroke commands for your
machine. The Command Summary Card also contains instructions for using
the disk utilities and for transferring characters from Bard's Tale,
Ultima III, and Wizardry (see "Pre-Built Parties" below).

Adventurer's Guild

This is where you start each time you begin a new game; i.e., the first
time you play or after all the characters in your party have "expired."
The Adventurer's Guild is the only place in town where you can create
characters, form a party, and save characters to disk.

Pre-Built Parties

When you enter the Adventurer's Guild the first time, you'll find an
assembled band of Adventurers already waiting and ready to go. This is
the *ATEAM. They're all first level characters and are equipped with
only the bare essentials in the way of armor and weapons, but they're
quite adequate for getting your feet wet in the "starter" dungeon. Use
the instructions on the Command Summary Card to help you get the *ATEAM
moving, and see the "Character Types" section for more information about
characters and party selection.

In addition to using the *ATEAM, advanced players can also transfer
parties that have already been assembled in Bard's Tale, Ultima III or
Wizardry. Many of the party's attributes, such as experience points,
weapons, and so on, are transferred to The Destiny Knight. See the
Command Summary Card for step-by-step instructions for transferring
characters on your computer system.

The Map

The map that's included with The Destiny Knight will help you become
familiar with the Realm and the important locations within, but you're
on your own inside forests, buildings and dungeons. It's a good idea to
keep plenty of graph paper handy while playing so you can create maps of
the places you explore. This is especially important in the puzzle rooms
because you may have to return to these over and over, making a little
more progress each time before you make it all the way through. Keeping
a detailed map of your wanderings makes this process easier. Here's a
clue: the mazes are set up on a 22 by 22 grid. North is to the top of
the screen, east is to the right, and so on. Some of the more important
locations are:

Cities -- there are six cities in the Realm: Tangramayne, Ephesus,
Philippi, Colosse, Corinth, and Thessalonica.

Castles -- there are a number of castles you'll need to visit,
including: Fanskar's Castle, Dargoth's Tower, and Oscon's Fortress.

Forests -- The forests of the Realm hide a variety of interesting
buildings, huts and strongholds (as well as a host of evildoers). Crypts
can also be found in the wilderness. The Gray Crypt dungeon is one, in
particular, that you won't want to miss.

Temples -- for healing wounded party members.

Taverns -- for food, drink, and more importantly, information.

Roscoe's -- for more spell energy.

Casinos -- for gambling types. Be careful, the dealers have been
reported to cheat...

Bedder's Bank -- for storing your gold for indefinite periods. Bedder
doesn't pay interest, but his banks are never robbed or go bankrupt. You
can make withdrawals at any branch.

The Review Board -- for increasing the level of your characters and
learning new magic. This one's not on the map, you must find it on your
own.

For more about mapping and locations in the Realm, see the "Places"
section below.


Combat

Only the first four characters and monsters within melee range can
engage in hand-to-hand combat. The Destiny Knight uses the same combat
modes as Bard's Tale, such as Party Attack, Bard Song, and Hide in
Shadows, but distance now has an effect on combat. Enemies appear within
a range of 10 to 90 feet from your party. Enemies 10 feet away are in
melee range and can attack or be attacked with hand-held weapons. Melee
range always begins at 10' unless you have any type of elongated weapon.

Weapons that are thrown or shot, such as axes, spears, and arrows, are
known as missile weapons and have a range in which they are effective.
These weapons are usually nonrecoverable: they can be used only once.
There are, of course, exceptions to this rule. Some magical missile
weapons (such as Zen arrow) can be reused, and at least one non magical
missile weapon (the boomerang) can be reused because it returns to the
one who threw it. To throw or shoot a weapon, select the "Use" function
during combat. And naturally, to use arrows you must have a bow... See
the "Combat System" section for descriptions of more weapons and ranges.

Spells (including Dragon Breath) also have effectiveness ranges. Shorter
ranges will usually have normal effectiveness, while longer ranges will
have decreased effectiveness; e.g. if a spell range is listed at 30' and
you use it at 60', the spell will not be as effective at the longer
range. See the "Magic System" section for descriptions of all spells and
ranges.

Magic

There are five levels of magic user which are described below.

Conjurers: Can create objects such as fireballs or magic compasses out
of thin air, as well as heal wounded party members.

Magicians: Can bestow magical effects on common items. They can make
metal glow, or make the air around an adventurer as strong as a suit of
armor.

Sorcerers: Can create illusions, such as additional party members. Or
they can heighten the party's awareness by giving the party members such
abilities as better night vision.

Wizards: Can summon and control supernatural forces, such as summoning
elementals or reanimating the dead.

Archmage: These magic users have learned at least three levels for each
of the previous four magic user classes. The Archmage is one of the most
powerful and important characters in The Destiny Knight because an
Archmage can do almost anything. Remember, Lagoth Zanta is an
Archmage... fight fire with fire.

The Conjurer and Magician levels are interchangeable; you start at
either one. Sorcerer and Wizard classes aren't available to first level
adventurers. To achieve these classes, a magic user must have achieved
third level magic spells in the previous magic user class. This means
that a Magician who can use third level Magician spells is eligible to
become a Sorcerer. A Sorcerer who is using third level Sorcerer Spells
is eligible to become a Wizard. But remember, if you skip a magic user
class (e.g., starting at Sorcerer instead of Magician), you cannot go
back and master the lower level. And if you are striving for
Archmagedom, remember that a character can become an Archmage only by
mastering at least three spell levels for each of the magic user
classes, and a true Archmage has mastered all seven spell levels for
each class -- Lagoth Zanta did.


The Bard

The bard's music is his magic. With the proper instrument he can play
while exploring or fighting (with different effects.) The Bard has seven
tunes to choose from, and can play as many songs as experience levels.
But the Bard can play only one tune at a time. Because the Bard makes a
special kind of magic, he or she can often help when normal magic is
ineffective. For instance, if all your light spells are out and you're
in complete darkness because your party is in an anti-magic zone, by
Bard song number seven, "The Watchwood Melody."


The Sage

The Sage lives alone in the wilderness and is a treasure trove of useful
information. You should return to see the Sage after completing every
dungeon, for he provides the clues that will guide you in each step of
finding the fragments of the Destiny Wand and defeating Lagoth Zanta.
But you'll find that the Sage's knowledge isn't given freely. In fact,
it's not even cheap. To begin your first adventure, ask the Sage about
The Tombs...


Special Members

In addition to the regular characters you create and add to your party,
there are also characters who you will meet, conjure, or summon, and who
will join your party during the game. Some of these characters are
beneficial to your party (they will help during combat, or while solving
a puzzle), others are hostile to your party (they will join your party
in order to start intra-party combat).

It is essential that you always have one or two empty character slots in
your party so you can add special members. While this leaves the door
wide open for creatures such as the Doppleganger monster to infiltrate
your ranks, it also gives you the ability to enlist the aid of special
characters who may bring you closer to winning the game (or just save
your first from a horrendous death). See the "Character Types" section
for more information on special characters.


Time

Time is definitely not on your side here. It moves inexorably onward
whether or not you touch the computer. And nighttime is not the right
time to be caught outside. Especially since you'll use up spell points
faster at night -- they only regenerate in daylight. The Adventurer's
Guild is a nice place to spend your first night in the Realm... it's
always daytime when you leave the Guild.

Other places where time becomes an especially important factor are in
the Snare of Death puzzle rooms. Once you enter a puzzle room, the game
converts to real-time, not game-time. Each puzzle room has its own
amount of time in which you must solve the puzzle and get out alive. And
remember, your party cannot leave a puzzle room until the puzzle is
solved. See the "Places" section for more information about puzzle
rooms.


CHARACTER TYPES

Humans are only one of many races that can be found in the Realm of the
Bard. Half the fun of exploring the Realm is learning about and getting
to know the non-human inhabitants. In this chapter we'll take a look at
the different races, classes, and abilities.

Races

Including humans, there are a total of seven races that inhabit the
Realm of the Bard. Each of the races that inhabit the Realm are
described briefly in the following sections.


Human: The people of this race are known for their inventiveness,
hardiness, aggressiveness, and downright stubbornness in the face of
adversity. A perfect set of traits for survival in the Realm of the
Bard.

Elf: These fair-haired, fair-skinned people closely resemble humans but
are usually taller, faster, and more agile. The Elven people are highly
skilled in the arts -- especially magic and war.

Dwarf: These short, stout people are amazingly strong and healthy, but
not always very bright. All very good reasons to make sure you have
dwarves on your side in a fight.

Hobbit: These small people are wise, nimble, and usually very patient.
It is said, if need be, a hobbit can steal the gold-purse from a shadow.

Half-Elf: These people are living proof of the compatibility between
humans and elves. They are fair-haired and light-skinned like elves, but
gain some bulk and strength through their human ancestry.

Half-Orc: Orcs are large, semi-intelligent, pig-like creatures that can
usually be found in the employ of evil wizards. Half-orcs, because they
are 50% human, aren't quite as despicable as full orcs -- but they're
sometimes just as dangerous.

Gnome: These people resemble dwarves, but usually have less hair,
shorter tempers, and are always better at using magic.


Classes

Each of the characters in your party of adventurers must belong to a
particular class, or profession. There isn't a single class that's the
best, your characters must depend on each other an use teamwork to
succeed on their quest.

Class selection is the most important aspect of creating a character in
the Realm of the Bard. There are ten different classes, but only eight
to choose from with a newly generated character. A character's class is
shown in View Character mode, and onscreen at all times by an
abbreviation in the CL (Class) column. Each class has its own set of
strengths and limitations, which are described briefly in the following
sections.

Warrior (displayed onscreen as WA): Warriors can use nearly every weapon
they come across. For every four levels of experience after the first,
warriors get an extra attack capability during combat.

Paladin (PA): Paladins are fighters who have sworn to fight all evil and
uphold honor and purity in all places and situations. Paladins can use
most weapons including many that other fighters can't. Paladins get
multiple attacks at higher levels and also have greater resistance to
evil magic.

Rogue (RO): Rogues are professional thieves with mediocre combat skills.
However, rogues are experts at skulking in the shadows, as well as
searching for traps and disarming them. Without a rogue in your ranks,
your party's booty will come at an unusually high price.

Bards (BA): Bards are colorful characters. Most Bards are warriors who
have given up the art of war for the art of magical music. This doesn't
mean, however, that they've forgotten how to handle warrior weapons. But
because they're not true warriors, Bards don't get the advantage of
extra attacks during combat.

Because of their unique form of musical magic, it's nearly impossible to
survive in the Realm without a Bard in your party. Most Bards always
have a repertoire of seven songs, but must also have an instrument in
order to perform. A Bard song played while exploring is long lasting and
will resume after combat mode; even if other tunes were played during
the fight. Songs performed during combat are brief, lasting only one
round, and their effects differ from the noncombat versions.

Only one Bard tune can play at a time. If a second tune is started by
the same or a different Bard, the first song will end. A Bard can play
as many tunes as he has experience levels before his throat dries; e.g.,
if your Bard has four experience levels, he'll be able to play four
tunes from his repertoire. The only cure for a Bard's dry throat is a
large tankard of ale from the nearest tavern. This is the source of one
of the Realm's popular sayings, "When the going gets tough, the Bard
goes drinking..."

Hunter (HU): Hunters are often known by other titles; assassin,
mercenary, ninja. Hunters can use most weapons and can often instantly
kill an opponent by striking a nerve center or other vital area during
an attack (A handy skill that increases in accuracy as the hunter
accrues experience points).

Monk (MO): Monk are inhuman fighting machines trained in all aspects of
the martial arts. Monks can use traditional weapons, but usually
(especially at the higher experience levels) are most effective using
their bare hands.

Conjurer (CO): Conjurers are the first of the five levels of magic
users. They can heal the wounded and create physical phenomena such as
fire and light.

Magician (MA): Magicians are the second level of magic users and use
their magic to change the properties of physical objects; i.e.,
enchanting a sword, making armor stronger, or making a dungeon wall
disappear.

Sorcerer (SO): Sorcerers are the third level and deal with the creation
and manipulation of illusions. This level is very powerful and isn't
available to new characters.

Wizard (WI): Wizards are the fourth level and can summon and bind
supernatural creatures. These creatures don't like our plane of
existence and aren't very friendly. Trying to control these creatures is
extremely hazardous and therefore the Wizard level isn't available newly
created characters.

Archmage (AR): Archmages have mastered at least three levels of magic
spells for the previous four magic user classes. Needless to say an
Archmage can pretty much do as he pleases, and new characters cannot
immediately proceed to the Archmage level. If you have an Archmage in
your party, you probably don't need to read any further.

For more information on the magic classes and using magic, see the
"Magic System" section later in this manual.


Special Members (MN or IL)

Special members (generically called "monsters") are characters who meet
and join your party during its travels. Special members can be either
monster (MN) or illusion (IL). There are two ways for special members to
join your party:

1. By being summoned, created as an illusion, or using some
other magical artifice.
2. By introducing themselves to the party and offering their
services as a comrade in arms.

Your party can have up to six special members. They can even be renamed
and saved to disk when you return to the Adventurer's Guild. However,
you can't control special members during combat. Special members pick
their own forms of attack and usually go after the first group of
monsters your party is facing. Likewise, special members can carry items
for your party, but cannot find or use items -- only characters you
create can use the items they find or purchase in the game. Illusionary
members disappear from the party ranks when they are killed. An
illusionary party member is killed if any foes disbelieve in its
existence. Any items that an illusionary special member is carrying
(such as gold) are lost if the illusionary character is killed.

If a nonillusionary special member is attacked by another party member
for any reason, the special member immediately turns hostile and fights
until defeated. Dead special members can be resurrected and healed just
like your regular Destiny Knight characters. You can remove special
members from your party with the "Drop Character" command (see your
Command Summary Card).


View Character Attributes

Each character possesses six attributes that define the physical and
mental abilities for the character, as well as the character's race,
class, and possessions. Each of the character's attributes is randomly
assigned a value from 1 to 18 -- the higher number, the greater the
capability. The following five attributes are found in the View
Character mode. (see the Command Summary Card for the key sequence that
enters View Character mode.)

Strength (displayed in View Character as ST): Pure, physical power that
determines the amount of damage a character can inflict on an opponent
in hand-to-hand combat. Make sure your fighting characters are strong.

Intelligence (IQ): Mental power. A magic user gets bonus spell points
for a high intelligence score.

Dexterity (DX): Agility and nimbleness. A high score in this area makes
your characters harder to hit and helps them land the first blow during
combat.

Constitution (CN): Healthiness and survivability. It takes more damage
to kill a characters with strong constitution. Strong constitution is
usually reflected with bonus hit points (See "Hit Points" below.)

Luck (LK): As always, luck is ambiguous, unpredictable, and has a number
of unforeseen effects on your characters' lives. Lucky characters are
more likely to resist evil magic and avoid traps.

Spell levels (SORC, MAGI, CONJ, WIZD): These four attributes in View
Character mode show the spell level for the character. This rating
determines the highest group of spells a magic user can use in their
class. For instance, a Conjurer with a rating of 3 can only use Conjurer
spells up to the third level -- higher levels can't be accessed without
a higher rating. There are seven spell levels per magic user class. Like
other attributes, the ability to learn new spell levels increases with
experience points (but you must pay to learn new spells). The table
below lists the progression.

Experience Level Spell Level
---------------- -----------
1 1
2 1
3 2
4 2
5 3
6 3
7 4
8 4
9 5
10 5
11 6
12 6
13+ 7


Character Acquisitions

Also found in the View Character mode are skills or items that your
characters acquire during the course of the adventure. There are four
categories altogether.

Experience Points (EXPER): Measures the character's abilities that have
been gained by experience. The higher the experience points, the greater
the character's abilities. Characters earn experience after every
battle, relative to the success or failure of the battle (success or
failure being determined by the number of survivors in your party).

Gold: Gold is as precious in the Realm of the Bard as it is your own
world. Your characters start with just enough gold to buy them the bare
essentials in armor and weapons to start the quest. Your party can earn
more gold from the monsters they defeat in battle, or by selling the
things they find in dungeons -- the overall strength and armament of
your party should determine which method you use in the beginning.

Level (LVL): Reflects the level of achievement within a character's
class. For example, Level 1 is a Novice, while Level 13 is needed to
become a Master of a magic user class.

Based on experience points, the Review Board promotes characters to
higher levels within their class -- but only if the character requests
promotion in-person; i.e. you must find the Review Board. Advancing
level is important because it usually means increases in attribute
scores such as hit points, spell points, and so on.


Items (1-8): Up to eight can be carried at one time. Items fall into ten
categories; weapons, shields, armor, helms, gloves, musical instruments,
figurines, rings, wands, and miscellaneous. You must Equip the
characters with the item in order to use it (see your Command Summary
Card for the Equip command). Only one item from each type can be
equipped at one time. This means that your characters can't use two
shields at once, even though there may be two shown in the inventory.

Certain items can be used only by specific characters. For example, only
Bards can use musical instruments. An item that can't be used by a
character is marked with a í in View Character mode or the Equipment
Shoppe. An item that has been equipped (so the character can use it) is
marked with a * symbol.


Onscreen Statistics

In addition to the ten basic attributes shown in View Character mode,
there are an additional five characteristics that determine your
characters' attributes in other areas such as health, experience, armor
class, and so on. The next five attributes are listed in onscreen
columns at all times.

Armor Class (AC): Reflects the level of protection a character has
against physical attack. Armor class starts at 10 for a totally
unprotected character with low dexterity. As the character's protection
improves through armor, spells, and other means, the armor class drops
to -10, and eventually all the way to L+ (the equivalent of a -21 armor
class). Once your character's armor class reaches L+, the display
doesn't change even though the armor class may continue to go lower than
-21.

Hit Points (HIT PTS): The two columns that show hit points reflect the
amount of damage a character can take before dying and the character's
current condition. The HIT column shows the character's total number of
hit points, or the character's potential at full health. The PTS column
shows the actual current condition of the character. For example, if a
character has HIT column that contains 20 and a PTS column that contains
20, the character is at full health. If the character takes 3 points of
damage during battle, however, the HIT column remains at 20 while the
PTS column drops to 17; thus showing you the character's total potential
hit points, and the current actual status.

Spell Points (SPL PTS): These two columns show the total possible and
current actual spell point status. Spell points are used with each spell
the character casts. The amount of spell points used is determined by
the spell itself. For instance, if a Conjurer's SPL and PTS columns both
contain 18, he is at full power. If the Conjurer casts a Mage Flame
spell that costs 2 spell points, the PTS column value drops to 16. The
character's maximum spell points are listed in the SPL column, while the
spell points remaining are shown in the PTS column.

Class (CL): Shows the character's class in abbreviated form. See
"Classes" to learn the onscreen abbreviation for each class.


Creating a Character

If you decide that you want to create your own characters for your
quest, you can use the Create Character mode. Create Character mode only
works in the Adventurer's Guild. Use the command shown on your Command
Summary Card to enter Create Character mode, then use the following
procedures to build your characters one-by-one:



1. Select a race for the character.

2. Next the computer displays a set of attribute values for the
character which are like a combination of genes and luck. There
is a lowest possible value for each attribute of each race --
these are the genes. The computer then "rolls the dice" and
adds the random number to each of the attributes -- this is the
luck. The sum of the gene and luck values are then displayed as
the attribute values for the character.

3. If you're satisfied with the computer's "dice roll", choose a
character class, then name the character. If you want to try
for a better set of attributes, use the command listed on the
Command Summary Card to make the computer "reroll the dice."

4. After the character's name is assigned, the character is
saved to your character disk.

5. To use the character, you must add him or her to your party
with the Add command shown on the Command Summary Card.


Tips from the Adventurer's Guild: Characters

1. Don't be too concerned about losing a Level 1 character; just
make another. When your characters reach level 3, however,
backup your character disk regularly with your favorite disk
copy utility.

2. You have several options if your favorite character is
killed. You can spend spell points to resurrect the character
with magic, or gold to resurrect the character in a temple. You
can turn off the computer, reboot, and reload your party from
the point where you last saved them to disk (meaning all the
characters lose all the gold and experience points they may
have earned since the last time they were saved). Or you can
delete the dead character from your main character disk, and
replace the character from your backup disk.

3. 16s, 17s and 18s can often make a big difference when
"rolling" for a character's attributes. For example, Dexterity
gives everyone bonus armor protection and first strike
capabilities; Strength enables you to do extra damage in
combat; Luck often allows you to survive even if you
accidentally spring a trap; and Constitution provides all
characters with extra hit points. Although it makes no
difference in the first allotment, magic users with high
intelligence ratings get bonus spell points in later turns

4. Many races have a specific attribute they excel in. Pay
close attention to the starting attributes when designing your
party.

5. Develop a Sorcerer fast -- they're quite useful in dungeons.
Wizards are very important at advanced levels because they can
summon extremely powerful special members. Work toward
Archmagedom. You'll need at least one, and wish you had many more.

6. The *ATEAM, while excellent for the starter dungeon, may not
last long at the advanced levels. Experiment with a hunter:
because of their "critical hit" capability, a hunter can often
vanquish superior monsters. And don't overlook monks -- after
the sixth level they are probably the best fighters of all.

7. Warriors and other fighters are often less effective against
the higher level, magic-using monsters, but without their
protection, your Magic Users won't survive long enough to learn
the higher level magic spells.

8. Keep a slot open for special members. There will be times
when you need to temporarily enlist the services of a special
member to help your party through certain portions of the game.
If all the member slots in your party are filled, you won't be
able to add a special member.

9. You can save special members with your party, but you must
either rename the party, or save the special members separately.

10. Beware the Doppelganger monster. It enters your party and
looks just like one of your characters. Dealing with one
Doppelganger monster isn't so bad, but if you have a number of
empty member slots and multiple Doppelgangers enter your party,
things can get pretty confusing.

11. The first character in your party is the group leader.
Having a high level, high luck character in that slot can help
you avoid a lot of trouble. A Paladin is the most effective
group leader.

12. Pay close attention to character statistics while
exploring. If you see that your character's spell or hit points
are draining for no apparent reason, you may be in a special
square -- move immediately. There are many special squares in
The Destiny Knight that can affect your party in various (and
lethal) ways -- watch out for them.

13. Always leave open slots for new items in your inventory.
Some puzzles require you to take or possess a certain item in
order to solve the puzzle. Having no room in your inventory
prevents you from solving these types of puzzles.


PLACES

With six cities, 25 dungeon levels, and wilderness that you can fully
explore, there are a lot of places you can visit in your travels through
the Realm. Even characters with high intelligence attributes are bound
to get lost without some diligence on your part.


Maps

A map of the Realm, that shows main routes and general locations, is
included with The Destiny Knight. Use this map to help find your way
around the Realm, but beware, the Realm is a big place and not all
places have been explored and mapped. If you find that your party is
going where no man, or elf, has gone before, make a map. Also, if you
ever become lost, press "?" and The Destiny Knight displays your
location and the time of day.



Unmarked Buildings

Most of the buildings in the Realm are unmarked and can be entered by
moving the party Forward (see the Command Summary Card for the Forward
command) through the building's door. Often, however, an unmarked
building will be inhabited by a group of the vicious invaders and your
party will have to fight for their lives. Other times, an unmarked
building may house the entrance to a dungeon.

If you suspect that a building houses the enemy, a dungeon entrance, or
if you're just out looking for a good fight, use the Kick command (see
the Command Summary Card) to kick in the door and get the drop on the
cretins. Remember: Fighting is good for your party -- it builds
experience points.

Adventurer's Guild

An Adventurer's Guild is the "union hall" where unemployed characters
hang out, hoping to join a quest party. The Adventurer's Guild is the
only place you can create and add new characters to your party. There is
an Adventurer's Guild in every city.


Garth's Equipment Shoppe

Garth is a retired hero whose deeds are recalled in many a Bard song, so
his knowledge of weaponry and other artifacts is vast. You can buy,
sell, or identify armor, weapons, and other items at Garth's chain of
equipment shoppes in almost every city throughout the Realm. You can
also pool all of the party's gold for purchasing those special (but
expensive) items. Garth's success as a hero and businessman are known
throughout the Realm and the blacksmiths of the Realm gladly provide his
shoppes with an endless supply of basic armor and weapons.

Unique items brought back from the dungeons can be sold to Garth, but
they won't be resupplied if they're sold to other adventurers (other
residents of the Realm do purchase equipment from Garth's shoppes).
Occasionally you may find an object that you suspect is special.
Although you may be able to identify the object's general purpose (i.e.
ring, shield, sword), you may not be able to identify its specific type
(i.e. Ring of Power, Dragon Shield, Sword of Zar). Garth can probably
identify these objects you, but Garth doesn't work cheap.


Review Board

The Review Board is composed of representatives for the ten different
classes from all over the Realm. Based upon your accumulated experience
points, the Review Board will consider your in-person request for
advancement to higher levels. The Review Board also teaches new spells
(for a nominal fee) to magic users who qualify for advancement.

There is a Review Board in almost every city of the Realm, but you'll
need to do a bit of searching in order to find them -- and it's
important that you find them. Your success in the Realm depends upon the
ability to progress to higher character levels. By the way, the Review
Board is closed at night and on all government proclaimed holidays.


Casinos

Casino gambling is a favorite way to relax after a hard day of battling
orcs, and casinos are found in almost all of the Realm's cities. The
casinos play a game whose closest equivalent is blackjack, and it's
reported (but not substantiated) that many of the dealers cheat through
their teeth when they're stiffed for a tip.


Bedder's Bank for the Bold

Bedder -- an old half-elf who reportedly sold his mother to a band of
lonely orcs in order to finance his first branch -- will deposit your
gold for safekeeping at any of his bank's branches throughout the Realm.
Although stingy old Bedder doesn't pay interest on your deposits, his
bank is never robbed and you can withdraw your gold at any time, at any
branch. When you withdraw your gold, you must withdraw the entire
amount. You can, however, make partial deposits. Another nice feature of
Bedder's Bank is that the gold you deposited will still be there if you
quit and restart the game (even if you're using a new set of
characters).

Taverns

Taverns are favorite places to obtain refreshment and gossip. Watch out
for your Bard in taverns -- he has a tendency to overtip the bartender
and tip over the barmaid.


Dungeons

Dungeons take a variety of forms such as towers, catacombs, or tombs and
each can have a varied number of levels. You can go up to higher or down
to lower levels by using stairways, portals, or teleportation; whichever
is more convenient or readily available.

Stairways are not visible from afar, but you're asked whether you want
to ascend or descend when your party steps onto one. Dungeons also
contain plenty of special squares that may affect your party in varied,
and sometimes deadly, ways. If you suddenly see that your character's
spell or hit points are draining away, you may be in a special square.
Move your party to safety as quickly as possible.

Portals appear as holes in the floor or ceiling and are only visible
from a distance. Your character won't go through a portal simply by
standing on it, you must give the command to do so (see the Command
Summary Card). If a character jumps down a portal, the character will be
damaged by the fall unless a levitation spell is used. A levitation
spell is the only way to travel up through a portal.

The location of dungeon entrances are well-kept secrets, but there are
plenty of clues throughout the Realm -- if you look hard enough.


Roscoe's Energy Emporium

Roscoe's a cagey old mage who opened his chain of Energy Emporiums
hoping to cash in on the sorceral energy crisis of '27. Even after the
evil archdemon was destroyed and the sorceral energy continuum was
restored, Roscoe found that his Energy Emporiums could still turn a
healthy profit. They're still around today, serving the energy needs of
all magic users. Spell points aren't recharging fast enough? Go see
Roscoe... but be sure to bring plenty of gold.


Temples

As divine institutions of resurrection and complete healing, temples are
the only places that can cure characters who have been withered or
turned to stone. A resurrected character still has all the same item,
gold and experience points, but is resurrected with only one hit point.
Although a dead character can be brought back to life, he may have to
sell his soul in order to do it.


Tips from the Adventurer's Guild: Places

1. Your first adventure should be in the starter dungeon in
Tangramayne. The starter dungeon is at the opposite end of town
from the Adventurer's Guild. Instructions and details about
this dungeon are presented when your party enters. Any party is
allowed in the starter dungeon, but only characters less than
level 12 receive the maximum reward for completing the starter
dungeon.

2. Explore and map every square in every maze. There are "Magic
Mouths" that give hints. Mazes also contain one-of-a-kind magic
items and spell regeneration zones. In addition to keeping you
alive, carefully drawn maps will show the logical places for
secret doors and rooms.

3. Avoid potential traps. High level rogues can easily open
chests, but use the "Trapzap" spell when in doubt. TRZP is
guaranteed to protect the party from harm. TRZP will disarm any
trap you encounter, including the innocuous Gas Cloud traps --
which have doomed many a brave (but foolish) hero.

4. Make sure all members of your party are fully healed before
entering a new dungeon.

5. When finding your bearings in a labyrinth, remember that
each successive level goes up in a tower or castle, and down in
a dungeon or tomb.

6. The segments of the Destiny Wand are hidden within real-time
puzzle rooms known as Snares of Death. The game will alert you
when your party has entered one. Once inside, you have a
limited amount of time to complete the various tasks, puzzles,
and riddles within the room and retrieve the segment. In some
rooms the tasks must be completed in a specific order, in other
rooms the order isn't important. In any case, if you take too
long in a puzzle room, your entire party will instantly perish.
There is a Snare of Death in every dungeon with the exception
of the starter.


COMBAT SYSTEM

You're going to have to fight to become The Destiny Knight. There's no
avoiding it (except temporarily); it's the only way to build experience
points and win the game. But don't worry, most of the monsters you'll
meet during the game will give you plenty of incentive to fight -- and
you won't always be able to run.

Combating "monsters" (a generic term for all opponents) occur randomly
and at set locations. You can also use intra-party combat should one of
your members turn to the dark side. A list of foes (broken down by the
number of foes in each group) is given at the beginning of the battle.
The maximum number of foes is up to four groups of monsters. Any groups
of monsters within 10' of your party is within melee range and can
physically attack your party. Some monsters, however, begin attacking
far away and may throw illusionary or summoned foes into your path to
keep your party from advancing. This tactic is difficult to defeat, but
with the right combination of magic and missile weapons, your party can
fight back.


Combat Actions

Like a boxing match, combat is divided into a series of rounds. You must
decide what action each of your characters will take in the upcoming
melee at the beginning of each round -- unless you decide you want to
run away. A menu of battle options appears for each member of your party
at the beginning of the round. Each menu option is described below.

(A)ttack Foes: Tells the character to physically assault members of any
group of monsters within 10'.

(P)arty Attack: Tells the character to physically assault another member
of the party, including special members. (See "Special Members" in the
"Character Types" section above.)

(D)efend: Tells the character to simply defend during the round, thus
reducing the chance of being hit.

(U)se an Item: Tells the character to use a magic item or missile weapon
from the inventory that's currently equipped for use. You may be
required to specify a target for the effect.

(B)ard Song: Tells the Bard to play a short tune to affect the party in
some fashion

(C)ast a Spell: Tells a magic user to cast a spell at the party or a
group of foes. You must enter the spell code and specify a target.

(H)ide in Shadows: Tells a rogue to try and avoid combat by hiding in
the shadows. If successful, the rogue is skipped as a target when the
combat round begins.

Your first four party members (0-3) can be physically attacked by
monsters and can also retaliate. The last three characters can be
attacked with magic only, and can retaliate with magic only. Using this
method puts your first four characters on the front line of attack, and
holds the others in reserve in case the front four don't fare to well.
Monsters within melee range operate similarly; they're the only group
that can attack or be attacked physically.

When the battle commands for all your party members have been entered,
the round begins. The most dexterous and powerful characters and
monsters usually strike first, but luck, character level, and character
class also play a role in the combat. The outcome of evenly matched
battles, however, often depends on getting in the first blow.

The scrolling speed of the combat messages can be increased or decreased
according to your taste. See the Command Summary Card for details on
this option.

Dead monsters are removed from the ranks of your foes, and dead
characters (including non illusionary special members) are moved to the
end of your party list at the end of every combat round. When combat
ends -- when either your party or the monsters are destroyed -- treasure
and experience points are distributed among the survivors.


Tips from the Adventurer's Guild: Combat

1. The character with the highest dexterity rating and level
number usually attacks first. Use the character with the
highest dexterity rating to attack especially fearsome
creatures such as Dragons. Less dexterous characters might not
survive long enough to get in the first strike.

2. Use spells and Bard song to lower the armor class of your
entire party. Remember, the lower the armor class rating the
better.

3. If attacked by more than two groups of monsters, concentrate
your efforts on the magic users first. If you can't kill all
the magic-using monsters, cast magic-repellant spells to
protect your party from illusions, possessions, and other
spells.

4. As a general rule, attack groups containing only one
monster last, unless it contains a particularly deadly monster,
then attack it while your party is strong.

5. Many undead monsters (monsters who have returned from the
dead; i.e., zombies) can drain experience levels, rapidly age
characters, critically hit, or even turn characters to stone.
Treat the undead with respect -- kill them quickly.

6. Be prepared to lose a lot with level one and two characters;
especially at night and when you're walking unarmed to Garth's
Equipment Shoppe. In fact, it's a good idea to stay close to
Temples at night so you can heal wounds quickly.

7. Remember that you cannot physically attack a group of
monsters that are more than 20' away. You can't advance up to
them either, if there is another group already within melee
range. For this reason, keep a well-stocked supply of missile
weapons (i.e., arrows, spears, axes, etc.) -- they allow you to
attack monsters who hide behind others.


MAGIC SYSTEM

Magic is power. But although magic often means the difference between
success and failure in the Realm of the Bard, it isn't always necessary
or wise to rely on magic. There are places in the Realm where magic
doesn't work, and certain monsters who are highly resistant to magic.
Sometimes your characters will just have to work up a sweat using good
old brute force.

Residual Spells

The best way to tell if your party is in an anti-magic zone is to watch
your residual spells. Residual spells are magic spells that work for
long periods of time, such as light spells, trap detection, secret door
detection, and magical armor. Most residual spells display a symbol
above the main message box onscreen to tell you that the spell is still
active. If one symbol disappears, the spell has expired. If all but a
magic light spell disappears, you are probably in an anti-magic zone.
All spells except magic light are canceled in anti-magic zones.

Spells have a point cost. Each spell costs the casting mage a small
amount of sorceral energy. A mage can recharge his sorceral energy in
three ways:

1. Enter direct sunlight. Sorceral energy recharges
automatically in direct sunlight.

2. Regenerate at Roscoe's Energy Emporium. Roscoe has prices
that would make OPEC blush.

3. Find one of the special regeneration zones scattered
throughout the Realm. Regeneration zones can be anywhere in
dungeons.


Magic Items

Inanimate objects can possess magical power also. Magical weapons, for
instance, inflict extra damage, while magical armor provides extra
protection. Other magical items radiate special energy that is
beneficial to your party. You may even need to find magic keys or
talismans necessary that will give you access to secret or protected
areas in the Realm. Magical items are often hidden in dungeons or
carried by monsters.

The general rule is: the more powerful the item, the harder it is to
obtain. The most powerful magic items are usually found in the most
challenging dungeons, guarded by the fiercest monster. When you obtain
one of these important items, be sure to guard it well -- it may be the
key to becoming The Destiny Knight.

Casting Spells

You cast spells by typing a four-letter abbreviation of the spell name
when the computer prompts you to do so. The entire list of spells,
codes, and spell points required for each begins in the "Conjurer
Spells" section later in the manual.


Magic Users

Magic users begin the game with the knowledge of all the spells for
their magic user class and level. Magic users learn new spells by level
(in groups), rather than one spell at a time. Each level can contain
from 2 to 4 spells. For instance, a first level Conjurer will
automatically know all the Conjurer spells for the first level (a total
of 3 spells.) A third level Conjurer will know the first, second, and
third level Conjurer spells (a total of 9 spells.)

Conjuring: Conjurers perform the instantaneous creation of objects and
effects by channeling their sorceral energy. Conjurer spells are potent,
but not omnipotent because of the enormous amount of energy required to
create even a moderate effect.

Conjurers can also affect natural phenomena to produce new effects. One
example would be distorting the space-time continuum in order to
teleport living creatures to new locations.

Magic: Magicians can bestow magical effects on common objects. This is
not to say that the item becomes magical, it doesn't. But it does
radiate magical energy for the duration of the spell. Spells usually
last as long as the combat continues.

The main purpose of the magic practiced by Magicians are to increase an
item's capabilities, give the item new capabilities, or to transform the
item into something completely different. For example, a magician might
cast a spell that makes a sword inflict more damage, makes dungeon walls
glow, or causes a wall to totally vanish for one move.

Sorcery: Sorcerers can cast illusions and possess a heightened sense of
awareness. The Sorcerer's motto is, "Seeing is believing." Sorcerers
create illusions by first envisioning an image, then magically
projecting that vision onto the retinas of all who watch.

When supplemented with the appropriate stimulus to the victim's other
senses, the illusion is so real it can hurt, even kill, the victim.
Naturally, the illusions are only effective as long as the victim
believes them to be real. As soon as the victim stops believing in the
illusion, the spell is broken. Because of their heightened senses and
precise control of the mind, Sorcerers can often see things that aren't
readily apparent.

Wizardry: Wizards can summon and control supernatural creatures and
energies. The Wizard has fewer spells to choose from than the other
classes, but Wizard spells are by far the most powerful.

The creatures a Wizard summons come from the Negative Plane. As a
special member controlled by your Wizard, these otherworldly creatures
will stay in your party and fight until defeated.

In addition to summoning Negative Plane creatures, the Wizard can often
trap and control normal monsters, and can harness incredible energy
sources as well.

Archmagedom: Archmages are the wise ones who have progressed through at
least three levels for each of the four mage classes. This gives the
Archmage the ability to pick and choose from up to 75 of the known
spells. The Archmage is one of the most powerful and well-respected
characters in the Realm of the Bard.

Moving Up In Rank

Mages who know at least three spell levels in an art (a magic user
class), can move up to a new mage class with the blessing of the Review
Board. This means a level 5 Conjurer can become a level 1 Magician.

Moving to the new class resets the character's experience points to 0,
but leaves the other attributes such as hit points, spell points, and
gold as they were. The character also retains knowledge, and can use all
the Conjurer spells -- but only through spell level 3.

Once a character moves to a new magic user class, he or she cannot go
back and learn the skipped spell levels.


THE BOOK OF SPELLS

The following sections list and describe all of the spells known to
Realm magic for each of the four mage classes. The sections are
organized as follows:

CODE Pt. Cost Range Duration
SPELL NAME -- a brief description of the spell's effect and any
special instructions for use.


The range of effectiveness is measured in number of game
squares, with each square equivalent to 10 feet (10'). The
range terms are defined below:


View affects line of sight
1 Foe affects a single monster, regardless of the number
your party faces.
1 Wall affects a wall in the direction the spellcaster faces.
All Foes affects all the monsters your party faces.
Group affects 1 of up to 4 monster groups.
Self affects the spellcaster only.
##' affects anything in the direction the spellcaster
is facing for the number of feet specified with ##.
Char affects the party member you designate.
Special affects the special member you designate.
« signifies a spell that hits with full effectiveness
up to the listed range, and at reduced effectiveness
when it hits at double the listed range.
N/A provides information, knowledge, or some other
effect that renders a range measurement Not Applicable.


In addition to a range, spells have a duration or lifetime. The
duration terms are defined below:


Combat lasts until combat ends through party victory,
monster victory, or running away.
1 Move lasts for exactly one move.
1 Round lasts for the entire round of combat.
Short lasts a few minutes only.
Medium lasts several minutes.
Long lasts twice as long as Short spells.
Indefinite lasts until the party enters the Adventurer's Guild or
an anti-magic zone.
Misc has multiple or variable ranges.
N/A is so short, assigning a duration is Not
Applicable. The result of the spell is immediate.



CONJURER SPELLS

Level 1

MAFL 2 VIEW MEDIUM
MAGE FLAME: a small self-propelled "torch" appears and floats
above the spellcaster as he travels.

ARFI 3 1 FOE (10') N/A
ARC FIRE: a fan of blue flames jets from the spellcaster's
fingers, inflicting 1 to 4 hits of damage, which are multiplied
by the spellcaster's level, on the selected opponent.

TRZP 2 30' N/A
TRAP ZAP: disarms any trap within 30 feet (3 squares), in the
direction the spellcaster is facing. TRZP also works on chests,
but still costs the same amount of spell points.


Level 2

FRFO 3 GROUP COMBAT
FREEZE FOES: binds your enemies in magical force, slowing them
down and making them easier to hit.

MACO 3 N/A MEDIUM
KIEL'S MAGIC COMPASS: a compass of shimmering magelight appears
above the party and shows the direction they face.

WOHL 4 CHAR N/A
WORD OF HEALING: lets a spellcaster heal a party member who
suffers from 4 to 16 points of damage by uttering a single word.


Level 3

LERE 5 VIEW LONG
LESSER REVELATION: an extended MAGE FLAME spell that also
reveals secret doors.

LEVI 4 PARTY SHORT
LEVITATION: partially nullifies gravity, causing the party to
float over traps, or up or down through portals.

WAST 5 GROUP (20') N/A
WARSTRIKE: an energy stream shot from the spellcaster's finger
that sizzles a group of foes for 5 to 20 hits of damage.


Level 4

INWO 6 PARTY N/A
ELIK'S INSTANT WOLF: summons a giant, extremely fierce wolf to
join your party.

FLRE 6 CHAR N/A
FLESH RESTORE: a powerful healing spell that restores 10 to 40
hit points to a party member, including those stricken with
insanity or poisoning.


Level 5

GRRE 7 VIEW LONG
GREATER REVELATION: operates like LESSER REVELATION, but
illuminates a wider area for a longer period of time.

SHSP 7 GROUP (20') ě N/A
SHOCK-SPHERE: creates a large globe of intense electrical
energy that envelops a group of enemies and inflicts 10 to 40
hits of damage.


Level 6

INOG 9 PARTY N/A
ELIK'S INSTANT OGRE: materialize the biggest, meanest ogre
you've ever met to ally with your party.

MALE 8 PARTY INDEF
MAJOR LEVITATION: operates like LEVI from level 3, but it lasts
dispelled (i.e., until the spell is terminated by some event
such as activating an anti-magic square).


Level 7

FLAN 12 PARTY N/A
FLESH ANEW: operates like FLRE, but affects every member of the
party.

APAR 15 PARTY N/A
APPORT ARCANE: teleports the party within a dungeon to any
location that's not protected by a teleportation shield. Also
teleports the party between cities that are in the range