









                           A Guide to the Mazes of Menace
                           (Guidebook for SLASH'EM 0.0.3)


                                   Eric S. Raymond
            (Extensively edited and expanded for 3.0 by Mike Threepoint)
                    (Revised for SLASH'EM 0.0.3 by Warren Cheung)



          1.  Introduction

               Having  exhausted  your  own  meager financial resources, as
          well as those of your parents, you find that you  must  end  your
          formal  education.  Your lack of experience and skills leaves you
          facing a pretty grim future.  You could look for some sort of me-
          nial  job  and hope to perform well enough to be noticed and per-
          haps rise in responsibilities until you were earning enough money
          to  be comfortable.  Or you could set out into the world and make
          your livelihood by  prospecting,  stealing,  crusading,  or  just
          plain  killing, for your gold.  Over the objections of your local
          guildmaster, you opt to follow the adventuring route.  After all,
          when  adventurers  came  back this way they usually seemed better
          off than when they passed through the first time.  And who was to
          say that all of those who did not return had not just kept going?

               Asking around, you hear about a bauble, called the Amulet of
          Yendor  by  some, which, if you can find it, will bring you great
          wealth.  One legend you were told even mentioned that the one who
          finds  the  amulet  will be granted immortality by the gods.  The
          amulet is rumored to be somewhere beyond the Valley of  Gehennom,
          deep within the Mazes of Menace.  You decide that even if the ru-
          mors of the amulet's powers are untrue, and even if it won't cure
          the  common plague, you should at least be able to sell the tales
          of your adventures to the local minstrels for a  tidy  sum.   You
          spend one last night fortifying yourself at the local inn, becom-
          ing more and more depressed as you watch the odds of your success
          being  posted on the inn's walls getting lower and lower.  In the
          morning you awake, gather together your belongings, and  set  off
          on your adventure...

               Your abilities and strengths for dealing with the hazards of
          adventure will vary with your background and training.

               Archeologists understand dungeons pretty well; this  enables
          them  to  move  quickly  and sneak up on the local nasties.  They
          start equipped with the tools for a proper scientific expedition.

               Barbarians  are  warriors out of the hinterland, hardened to
          battle.   They  begin  their  quests  with  naught  but  uncommon


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          strength, a trusty hauberk, and a great two-handed sword.

               Cavemen  and  Cavewomen start with exceptional strength but,
          unfortunately, with neolithic weapons.

               Doppelgangers have the envious ability  to  change  form  at
          will,   at  a  cost  of some mystic energy (mana),  although what
          they become may be a bit of a surprise,  even for them.

               Elves are agile, quick, and sensitive; very little  of  what
          goes  on  will escape an Elf.  The quality of Elven craftsmanship
          often gives them an advantage in arms and armor.

               Flame Mages have managed to harness mystical  energies  into
          the  control  of  the element of fire.  Notwithstanding their pet
          dragons,  woe be unto anyone who stands in the way of  a  skilled
          mage casting a fireball.

               Gnomes  are  quite  comfortable with the dank caverns of the
          dungeons and come well prepared,  as they know  what  to  expect.
          There is even rumor that a large number of their brethren work in
          the dungeons and call it their home.

               Healers are wise in medicine and apothecary.  They know  the
          herbs  and  simples  that  can restore vitality, ease pain, anes-
          thetize, and neutralize poisons; and with their instruments, they
          can  divine a being's state of health or sickness.  Their medical
          practice earns them quite reasonable amounts of money, with which
          they enter the dungeon.

               Ice  Mages  command the forces of cold.  An experienced Mage
          can summon great blizzards yet remain unaffected by  the  turnoil
          of the elements.

               Knights  are  distinguished  from  the  common skirmisher by
          their devotion to the ideals of chivalry and  by  the  surpassing
          excellence of their armor.

               Lycanthropes  are  wild  beasts who draw their strength from
          the phases of the moon,  and can transform into wolves when  they
          channel  their magical energies.  Even unarmed,  a Lycanthrope is
          a savage fighter,  as many scarred by their deadly claws can  at-
          test.

               Monks have mastered both the physical and the spiritual with
          their minds.  Spurning the weapons of  the  world,   an  advanced
          Monk can destroy even the greatest of enemies with naught but his
          bare hands.

               Necromancers have delved into the  darkest  of  the  magical
          lore,  and  mastered  some  of  the most forbidden of the magical
          lore.  Many have fallen to the armies of the undead that they are
          capable of bringing forth and controlling.



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               Priests  and Priestesses are clerics militant, crusaders ad-
          vancing the cause of righteousness with  arms,  armor,  and  arts
          thaumaturgic.   Their  ability to commune with deities via prayer
          occasionally extricates them from peril, but can also put them in
          it.

               Rogues  are  agile  and  stealthy thieves, with knowledge of
          locks, traps, and poisons.  Their  advantage  lies  in  surprise,
          which they employ to great advantage.

               Samurai  are  the elite warriors of feudal Nippon.  They are
          lightly armored and quick, and wear the dai-sho,  two  swords  of
          the deadliest keenness.

               Tourists  start out with lots of gold (suitable for shopping
          with), a credit card, lots of food, some maps, and  an  expensive
          camera.  Most monsters don't like being photographed.

               Undead  Slayers are specialists,  trained to hunt the undead
          as well as other incarnations of evil.  They are  well  aware  of
          the  weaknesses of their foes and come prepared.  Few denizens of
          darkness ever encounter such warriors of light and live  to  tell
          of it.

               Valkyries  are hardy warrior women.  Their upbringing in the
          harsh Northlands makes them strong, inures them  to  extremes  of
          cold, and instills in them stealth and cunning.

               Wizards  start out with a knowledge of magic, a selection of
          magical items, and a particular affinity for  dweomercraft.   Al-
          though seemingly weak and easy to overcome at first sight, an ex-
          perienced Wizard is a deadly foe.

               You set out for the dungeon and after several  days  of  un-
          eventful  travel you see the ancient ruins that mark the entrance
          to the Mazes of Menace.  It is late at night, so you make camp at
          the  entrance  and spend the night sleeping under the open skies.
          In the morning, you gather your gear, eat what may be  your  last
          meal outside, and enter the dungeon.


          2.  What is going on here?

               You  have  just  begun  a game of SLASH'EM.  Your goal is to
          grab as much treasure as you can, retrieve the Amulet of  Yendor,
          and  escape  the  Mazes of Menace alive.  On the screen is kept a
          map of where you have been and what you have seen on the  current
          dungeon  level;  as  you explore more of the level, it appears on
          the screen in front of you.

               When SLASH'EM's ancestor rogue first  appeared,  its  screen
          orientation  was  almost  unique  among  computer  fantasy games.
          Since then, screen orientation has become the  norm  rather  than
          the  exception;  SLASH'EM  continues this fine tradition.  Unlike


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          text adventure games that accept commands in pseudo-English  sen-
          tences  and  explain  the results in words, SLASH'EM commands are
          all one or two keystrokes and the results are  displayed  graphi-
          cally  on  the  screen.   A minimum screen size of 24 lines by 80
          columns is recommended; if the screen is  larger,  only  a  21x80
          section will be used for the map.

               SLASH'EM  generates  a  new  dungeon every time you play it;
          even the authors still find it an entertaining and exciting  game
          despite having won several times.


          3.  What do all those things on the screen mean?

               SLASH'EM  offers  a variety of display options.  The options
          available to you will vary from port to port,  depending  on  the
          capabilities  of  your hardware and software, and whether various
          compile-time options were enabled when your executable was creat-
          ed.  The three possible display options are: a monochrome charac-
          ter interface, a color character interface, and a  graphical  in-
          terface using small pictures called tiles.  The two character in-
          terfaces allow fonts with other characters to be substituted, but
          the  default  assignments use standard ASCII characters to repre-
          sent everything.  There is no difference between the various dis-
          play options with respect to game play.  Because we cannot repro-
          duce the tiles or colors in the Guidebook, and because it is com-
          mon  to  all ports, we will use the default ASCII characters from
          the monochrome character display when  referring  to  things  you
          might see on the screen during your game.

               In  order  to understand what is going on in SLASH'EM, first
          you must understand what SLASH'EM is doing with the screen.   The
          SLASH'EM screen replaces the ``You see ...'' descriptions of text
          adventure games.  Figure 1 is a sample of what a SLASH'EM  screen
          might look like.

          ------------------------------------------------------------------------
           The bat bites!

               ------
               |....|    ----------
               |.<..|####...@...$.|
               |....-#   |...B....+
               |....|    |.d......|
               ------    -------|--



           Player the Rambler         St:12 Dx:7 Co:18 In:11 Wi:9 Ch:15  Neutral
           Dlvl:1 $:0  HP:9(12) Pw:3(3) AC:10 Exp:1/19 T:257 Weak

          ------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                      Figure 1



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          3.1.  The status lines (bottom)

               The  bottom  two lines of the screen contain several cryptic
          pieces of information describing your current status.  If  either
          status  line  becomes  longer  than  the width of the screen, you
          might not see all of it.  Here are explanations of what the vari-
          ous status items mean (though your configuration may not have all
          the status items listed below):

          Rank
               Your character's name and professional ranking (based on the
               experience level, see below).

          Strength
               A  measure of your character's strength; one of your six ba-
               sic attributes.  Your attributes can range from 3 to 18  in-
               clusive  (occasionally  you  may  get super-strengths of the
               form 18/xx).  The higher your  strength,  the  stronger  you
               are.  Strength affects how successfully you perform physical
               tasks, how much damage you do in combat, and how  much  loot
               you can carry.

          Dexterity
               Dexterity  affects  your  chances to hit in combat, to avoid
               traps, and do other tasks requiring agility or  manipulation
               of objects.

          Constitution
               Constitution  affects  your ability to recover from injuries
               and other strains on your stamina.

          Intelligence
               Intelligence affects your ability to cast  spells  and  read
               spellbooks.

          Wisdom
               Wisdom comes from your practical experience (especially when
               dealing with magic).  It affects your magical energy.

          Charisma
               Charisma affects how certain creatures react toward you.  In
               particular,  it can affect the prices shopkeepers offer you.

          Alignment
               Lawful, Neutral, or Chaotic.   Often,  Lawful  is  good  and
               Chaotic  is  evil.  Your alignment influences how other mon-
               sters react toward you.  Monsters of a  like  alignment  are
               more likely to be non-aggressive, while those of an opposing
               alignment are more likely to be seriously offended  at  your
               presence.

          Dungeon Level
               How deep you are in the dungeon.  You start at level one and
               the number increases as you  go  deeper  into  the  dungeon.


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               Some  levels  are  special, and are identified by a name and
               not a number.  The Amulet of Yendor is reputed to  be  some-
               where beneath the twentieth level.

          Gold
               The  number  of  gold  pieces you are openly carrying.  Gold
               which you have concealed in containers is not counted.

          Hit Points
               Your current and maximum hit points.   Hit  points  indicate
               how  much  damage you can take before you die.  The more you
               get hit in a fight, the lower they get.  You can regain  hit
               points  by  resting,  or  by  using certain magical items or
               spells.  The number in parentheses  is  the  maximum  number
               your hit points can reach.

          Power
               Spell  points.  This tells you how much mystic energy (mana)
               you have available for spell casting.  Again,  resting  will
               regenerate the amount available.

          Armor Class
               A measure of how effectively your armor stops blows from un-
               friendly creatures.  The lower this number is, the more  ef-
               fective the armor; it is quite possible to have negative ar-
               mor class.

          Experience
               Your current experience level and experience points.  As you
               adventure,  you  gain experience points.  At certain experi-
               ence point totals, you gain an experience level.   The  more
               experienced you are, the better you fight and withstand mag-
               ical attacks.  Many dungeons show only your experience level
               here.

          Time
               The  number  of  turns elapsed so far, displayed if you have
               the time option set.

          Hunger status
               Your current hunger status, ranging from  Satiated  down  to
               Fainting.   If  your hunger status is normal, it is not dis-
               played.

               Additional status flags may appear after the hunger  status:
          Conf  when you're confused, FoodPois or Ill when sick, Blind when
          you can't see, Stun when stunned, and Hallu when hallucinating.

          3.2.  The message line (top)

               The top line of the screen is reserved for messages that de-
          scribe  things that are impossible to represent visually.  If you
          see a ``--More--'' on the top line, this means that SLASH'EM  has
          another  message  to  display on the screen, but it wants to make


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          certain that you've read the one that is there  first.   To  read
          the next message, just press the space bar.

          3.3.  The map (rest of the screen)

               The  rest  of the screen is the map of the level as you have
          explored it so far.  Each symbol on the screen  represents  some-
          thing.   You  can  set various graphics options to change some of
          the symbols the game uses; otherwise, the game will  use  default
          symbols.  Here is a list of what the default symbols mean:

          - and |
               The walls of a room, or an open door.

          .    The floor of a room, ice, or a doorless doorway.

          #    A  corridor, or possibly a kitchen sink (if your dungeon has
               sinks) or drawbridge.

          <    A way to the previous level.

          >    A way to the next level.

          +    A closed door, or a spell book containing a  spell  you  can
               learn.

          @    A human (you, usually).

          $    A pile of gold.

          ^    A trap (once you detect it).

          )    A weapon.

          [    A suit or piece of armor.

          %    Something edible (not necessarily healthy).

          ?    A scroll.

          /    A wand.

          =    A ring.

          !    A potion.

          (    A useful item (pick-axe, key, lamp...).

          "    An amulet (or a spider web).

          *    A gem or rock (possibly valuable, possibly worthless).

          `    A boulder or statue.



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          0    An iron ball.

          _    An altar, or an iron chain.

          }    A pool of water or moat or a pool of lava.

          {    A fountain.

          \    An opulent throne.

          a-zA-Z and other symbols
               Letters  and certain other symbols represent the various in-
               habitants of the Mazes of Menace.  Watch out,  they  can  be
               nasty and vicious.  Sometimes, however, they can be helpful.

               You need not memorize all these symbols;  you  can  ask  the
          game  what  any  symbol  represents with the `/' command (see the
          Commands section for more info).


          4.  Commands

               Commands are initiated by  typing  one  or  two  characters.
          Some  commands, like ``search'', do not require that any more in-
          formation be collected by SLASH'EM.  Other commands might require
          additional  information, for example a direction, or an object to
          be used.  For those commands that require additional information,
          SLASH'EM will present you with either a menu of choices or with a
          command line prompt requesting information.  Which you  are  pre-
          sented with will depend chiefly on how you have set the menustyle
          option.

               For example, a common question, in the form  ``What  do  you
          want  to use? [a-zA-Z ?*]'', asks you to choose an object you are
          carrying.  Here, ``a-zA-Z'' are the  inventory  letters  of  your
          possible  choices.   Typing  `?'  gives  you an inventory list of
          these items, so you can see what each letter refers to.  In  this
          example,  there  is  also a `*' indicating that you may choose an
          object not on the list, if you wanted to use something  unexpect-
          ed.  Typing a `*' lists your entire inventory, so you can see the
          inventory letters of every object you're carrying.   Finally,  if
          you change your mind and decide you don't want to do this command
          after all, you can press the ESC key to abort the command.

               You can put a number before most  commands  to  repeat  them
          that  many times; for example, ``10s'' will search ten times.  If
          you have the number_pad option set, you must type `n' to prefix a
          count,  so  the  example  above  would be typed ``n10s'' instead.
          Commands for which counts make no sense ignore  them.   In  addi-
          tion,  movement commands can be prefixed for greater control (see
          below).  To cancel a count or a prefix, press the ESC key.

               The list of commands is rather long, but it can be  read  at
          any  time during the game through the `?' command, which accesses


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          a menu of helpful texts.  As well,  there  is  now  a  menusystem
          available through the '`' command for those who would rather page
          through menus than hunt and peck for keys. Here are the  commands
          for your reference:

          ?    Help menu:  display one of several help texts available.

          `    Main menu:  access the menusystem.

          /    Tell  what a symbol represents.  You may choose to specify a
               location or type a symbol (or even a whole word) to  define.
               If  the help option is on, and SLASH'EM has some special in-
               formation about an object or monster  that  you  looked  at,
               you'll be asked if you want ``More info?''.  If help is off,
               then you'll only get the special information if you  explic-
               itly  ask for it by typing in the name of the monster or ob-
               ject.

          &    Tell what a command does.

          <    Go up to the previous level (if you are on the staircase  or
               ladder).

          >    Go  down  to  the next level (if you are on the staircase or
               ladder).

          [yuhjklbn]
               Go one step in the direction indicated (see Figure  2).   If
               there  is  a  monster  there, you will fight the monster in-
               stead.  Only these one-step movement commands cause  you  to
               fight monsters; the others (below) are ``safe.''

                                    y  k  u          7  8  9
                                     \ | /            \ | /
                                    h- . -l          4- . -6
                                     / | \            / | \
                                    b  j  n          1  2  3
                                              (if number_pad is set)

                                         Figure 2


          [YUHJKLBN]
               Go  in that direction until you hit a wall or run into some-
               thing.

          m[yuhjklbn]
               Prefix:  move without picking up any objects.

          M[yuhjklbn]
               Prefix:  move far, no pickup.

          g[yuhjklbn]
               Prefix:  move until something interesting is found.


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          G[yuhjklbn] or <CONTROL->[yuhjklbn]
               Prefix:  same as `g', but forking of corridors is  not  con-
               sidered interesting.

          .    Rest, do nothing for one turn.

          a    Apply (use) a tool (pick-axe, key, lamp...).

          A    Remove one or more worn items, such as armor.  Use `T' (take
               off) to take off only one piece of armor or `R' (remove)  to
               take off only one accessory.

          ^A   Redo the previous command.

          c    Close a door.

          C    Call (name) an individual monster.

          ^C   Panic button.  Quit the game.

          d    Drop  something.   Ex. ``d7a'' means drop seven items of ob-
               ject a.

          D    Drop several things.  In answer to the question ``What kinds
               of  things  do  you want to drop? [!%= au]'' you should type
               zero or more object symbols possibly followed by `a'  and/or
               `u'.

                    Da  - drop all objects, without asking for confirmation.
                    Du  - drop only unpaid objects (when in a shop).
                    D%u - drop only unpaid food.

          ^D   Kick something (usually a door).

          e    Eat food.

          E    Engrave  a  message  on the floor.  Engraving the word ``El-
               bereth'' will cause most monsters to not attack you hand-to-
               hand (but if you attack, you will rub it out); this is often
               useful to give yourself a breather.  (This  feature  may  be
               compiled  out  of  the  game, so your version might not have
               it.)

                    E- - write in the dust with your fingers.

          f    Fire ammunition from quiver.

          i    List your inventory (everything you're carrying).

          I    List selected parts of your inventory.






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                    I* - list all gems in inventory;
                    Iu - list all unpaid items;
                    Ix - list all used up items that are on your shopping bill;
                    I$ - count your money.

          o    Open a door.

          O    Set options.  You will be asked to enter an option line.  If
               you  enter  a  blank line, the current options are reported.
               Entering `?' will get you explanations of  the  various  op-
               tions.   Otherwise, you should enter a list of options sepa-
               rated by commas.  The available options are listed later  in
               this  Guidebook.   Options  are usually set before the game,
               not with the `O' command; see the section on options  below.

          p    Pay your shopping bill/Shopkeeper services.

          P    Put on a ring or other accessory (amulet, blindfold).

          ^P   Repeat previous message (subsequent ^P's repeat earlier mes-
               sages).

          q    Quaff (drink) a potion.

          Q    Ready ammunition in quiver.

          r    Read a scroll or spell book.

          R    Remove an accessory (ring, amulet, etc).

          ^R   Redraw the screen.

          s    Search for secret doors and traps around  you.   It  usually
               takes several tries to find something.

          S    Save  the game.  The game will be restored automatically the
               next time you play.

          t    Throw an object or shoot a projectile.

          T    Take off armor.

          ^T   Teleport, if you have the ability.

          v    Display version number.

          V    Display the game history.

          w    Wield weapon.  w- means wield nothing, use your bare  hands.

          W    Wear armor.

          x    Switch weapon slots.



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          X    Enter explore (discovery) mode.

          z    Zap a wand.

          Z    Zap (cast) a spell.

          ^Z   Suspend the game (UNIX(R) versions with job control only).

          :    Look at what is here.

          ;    Show what type of thing a visible symbol corresponds to.

          ,    Pick up some things.

          @    Toggle the autopickup option on and off.

          ^    Ask for the type of a trap you found earlier.

          )    Tell what weapon you are wielding.

          [    Tell what armor you are wearing.

          =    Tell what rings you are wearing.

          "    Tell what amulet you are wearing.

          (    Tell what tools you are using.

          *    List and change items currently in use.

          $    Count your gold pieces.

          +    List the spells you know.

          \    Show what types of objects have been discovered.

          !    Escape to a shell.

          #    Perform an extended command.  As you can see, the authors of
               SLASH'EM used up all the letters, so this is a way to intro-
               duce the less useful commands, or commands used under limit-
               ed circumstances.  You may obtain a list of them by entering
               `?'.   What  extended commands are available depends on what
               features the game was compiled with.

               If your keyboard has a meta key (which, when pressed in com-
          bination  with  another  key,  modifies  it by setting the `meta'
          [8th, or `high'] bit), you can invoke the  extended  commands  by
          meta-ing  the  first  letter of the command.  In OS/2, PC, and ST
          SLASH'EM, the `Alt' key can be used in this fashion; on the Amiga
          set the altmeta option to get this behavior.

          __________
          (R)UNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T.


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          M-a  Adjust inventory letters (most useful when the fixinv option
               is ``on'').

          M-b  Steal

          M-c  Talk to someone.

          M-d  Dip an object into something.

          M-e  Advance or check weapons skills.

          M-f  Force a lock.

          M-i  Invoke an object's special powers.

          M-j  Jump to another location.

          M-k  Advance or check weapons skills.  Same as ``#enhance''

          M-l  Loot a box on the floor.

          M-m  Use a monster's special ability.

          M-n  Name an item or type of object.

          M-o  Offer a sacrifice to the gods.

          M-p  Pray to the gods for help.

          M-q  Quit the game.

          M-r  Rub a lamp.

          M-s  Sit down.

          M-t  Use a class specific technique.

          M-u  Untrap something (trap, door, or chest).

          M-v  Print compile time options for this version of SLASH'EM.

          M-w  Wipe off your face.

          M-y  Polymorph yourself.

               If the number_pad option is on, some additional letter  com-
          mands are available:

          j    Jump to another location.  Same as ``#jump'' or ``M-j''.

          k    Kick something (usually a door).  Same as `^D'.

          l    Loot a box on the floor.  Same as ``#loot'' or ``M-l''.



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          N    Name  an  item or type of object.  Same as ``#name'' or ``M-
               N''.

          u    Untrap a trap, door, or chest.  Same as ``#untrap'' or  ``M-
               u''.


          5.  Rooms and corridors

               Rooms  and  corridors in the dungeon are either lit or dark.
          Any lit areas within your line of sight will be  displayed;  dark
          areas  are  only  displayed  if they are within one space of you.
          Walls and corridors remain on the map as you explore them.

               Secret corridors are hidden.  You can find them with the `s'
          (search) command.

          5.1.  Doorways

               Doorways connect rooms and corridors.  Some doorways have no
          doors; you can walk right through.  Others have  doors  in  them,
          which may be open, closed, or locked.  To open a closed door, use
          the `o' (open) command; to close it again, use  the  `c'  (close)
          command.

               You  can  get  through a locked door by using a tool to pick
          the lock with the `a' (apply) command, or by kicking it open with
          the `^D' (kick) command.

               Open  doors  cannot be entered diagonally; you must approach
          them straight on, horizontally or vertically.   Doorways  without
          doors are not restricted in this fashion.

               Doors  can  be  useful for shutting out monsters.  Most mon-
          sters cannot open doors, although a few don't need to (ex. ghosts
          can walk through doors).

               Secret  doors  are  hidden.   You can find them with the `s'
          (search) command.  Once found they are in all ways equivalent  to
          normal doors.

          5.2.  Traps (`^')

               There  are  traps throughout the dungeon to snare the unwary
          delver.  For example, you may suddenly fall into  a  pit  and  be
          stuck for a few turns trying to climb out.  Traps don't appear on
          your map until you see one triggered by moving onto it, see some-
          thing fall into it, or you discover it with the `s' (search) com-
          mand.  Monsters can fall prey to traps, too, which can be used as
          a useful defensive strategy.






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          6.  Monsters

               Monsters  you  cannot  see  are not displayed on the screen.
          Beware!  You may suddenly come upon one in a  dark  place.   Some
          magic  items  can  help  you  locate  them before they locate you
          (which some monsters can do very well).

          6.1.  Fighting

               If you see a monster and you wish to fight it, just  attempt
          to  walk  into  it.   Many  monsters you find will mind their own
          business unless you attack them.  Some of them are very dangerous
          when angered.  Remember:  discretion is the better part of valor.

          6.2.  Your pet

               You start the game with a little dog  (`d')  or  cat  (`f'),
          which follows you about the dungeon and fights monsters with you.
          Like you, your pet needs food to survive.  It usually  feeds  it-
          self  on  fresh carrion and other meats.  If you're worried about
          it or want to train it, you can feed  it,  too,  by  throwing  it
          food.   A  properly  trained pet can be very useful under certain
          circumstances.

               Your pet also gains experience from  killing  monsters,  and
          can  grow  over  time,  gaining hit points and doing more damage.
          Initially, your pet may even be better  at  killing  things  than
          you, which makes pets useful for low-level characters.

               Your  pet  will  follow  you up and down staircases if it is
          next to you when you move.  Otherwise your pet will  be  stranded
          and may become wild.

          6.3.  Bones levels

               You  may encounter the shades and corpses of other adventur-
          ers (or even former incarnations of yourself!) and their personal
          effects.   Ghosts  are  hard  to  kill,  but easy to avoid, since
          they're slow and do little damage.  You can plunder the  deceased
          adventurer's  possessions; however, they are likely to be cursed.
          Beware of whatever killed the former player; it is probably still
          lurking around, gloating over its last victory.


          7.  Objects

               When you find something in the dungeon, it is common to want
          to pick it up.  In SLASH'EM, this is  accomplished  automatically
          by  walking  over  the object (unless you turn off the autopickup
          option (see below), or move with the `m' prefix (see above)),  or
          manually by using the `,' command.

               If  you're  carrying too many things, SLASH'EM will tell you
          so and you won't be able to pick up anything more.  Otherwise, it


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          will  add  the  object(s) to your pack and tell you what you just
          picked up.

               When you pick up an object, it is assigned an inventory let-
          ter.   Many commands that operate on objects must ask you to find
          out which object you want to use.   When  SLASH'EM  asks  you  to
          choose a particular object you are carrying, you are usually pre-
          sented with a list of inventory letters to choose from (see  Com-
          mands, above).

               Some  objects,  such  as weapons, are easily differentiated.
          Others, like scrolls and potions, are  given  descriptions  which
          vary  according to type.  During a game, any two objects with the
          same description are the same type.   However,  the  descriptions
          will vary from game to game.

               When you use one of these objects, if its effect is obvious,
          SLASH'EM will remember what it is for you.  If its  effect  isn't
          extremely  obvious,  you will be asked what you want to call this
          type of object so you will recognize it later.  You can also  use
          the  ``#name''  command for the same purpose at any time, to name
          all objects of a particular type or just an individual object.

          7.1.  Curses and Blessings

               Any object that you find may be cursed, even if  the  object
          is otherwise helpful.  The most common effect of a curse is being
          stuck with (and to) the item.  Cursed weapons weld themselves  to
          your  hand  when wielded, so you cannot unwield them.  Any cursed
          item you wear is not removable by ordinary means.   In  addition,
          cursed  arms and armor usually, but not always, bear negative en-
          chantments that make them less effective in combat.  Other cursed
          objects may act poorly or detrimentally in other ways.

               Objects  can  also  be  blessed.  Blessed items usually work
          better or more beneficially than normal uncursed items.  For  ex-
          ample, a blessed weapon will do more damage against demons.

               There are magical means of bestowing or removing curses upon
          objects, so even if you are stuck with one, you  can  still  have
          the  curse  lifted and the item removed.  Priests and Priestesses
          have an innate sensitivity to this property  in  any  object,  so
          they  can  more  easily avoid cursed objects than other character
          classes.

               An item with unknown status will be reported in your  inven-
          tory with no prefix.  An item which you know the state of will be
          distinguished in your inventory  by  the  presence  of  the  word
          ``cursed'', ``uncursed'' or ``blessed'' in the description of the
          item.






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          7.2.  Weapons (`)')

               Given a chance, most monsters in the Mazes  of  Menace  will
          gratuitously  try to kill you.  You need weapons for self-defense
          (killing them first).  Without a weapon,  you  do  only  1-2  hit
          points of damage (plus bonuses, if any).

               There are wielded weapons, like maces and swords, and thrown
          weapons, like arrows and spears.  To hit monsters with a  weapon,
          you  must wield it and attack them, or throw it at them.  You can
          simply select to throw a spear.

               To shoot an arrow, you should first wield a bow, then  throw
          the  arrow.  An alternative method would be wield a bow and place
          the arrows in your Quiver, after witch you fire  the  ammunition.
          Crossbows  shoot  crossbow  bolts.  Slings hurl rocks and (other)
          stones (like gems).

               You can wield only one weapon at a time, but you can  change
          weapons  unless  you're  wielding a cursed one.  Exchanging hands
          allows you to ready both a primary and secondary weapon and  swap
          between them at the touch of a key.

               To  switch  to bare hands, wield `-', or use the `A' command
          which allows you to unwield the current  weapon  in  addition  to
          taking off other worn items.

               The  ``#enhance''  command  will  be present if the ``weapon
          skills'' feature is enabled, and deals with your  proficiency  in
          various  types of weapons (as well as spells).  Skilled adventur-
          ers find themselves much more capable with their weapons.

               Enchanted weapons have a ``plus'' (or ``to hit enhancement''
          which  can be either positive or negative) that adds or subtracts
          to/from your chance to hit and the damage you do  to  a  monster.
          The  only  way  to determine a weapon's enchantment is to have it
          magically identified somehow.

               Most weapons are subject to some type of damage  like  rust.
          Such damage can be repaired.

               Those  of you in the audience who are AD&D players, be aware
          that each weapon which exists in AD&D does  the  same  damage  to
          monsters  in SLASH'EM.  Some of the more obscure weapons (such as
          the aklys, lucern hammer, and bec-de-corbin) are  defined  in  an
          appendix to Unearthed Arcana, an AD&D supplement.

               The  commands  to  use weapons are `w' (wield), `t' (throw),
          and the ``#enhance'' extended command.

          7.3.  Armor (`[')

               Lots of unfriendly things lurk about; you need armor to pro-
          tect yourself from their blows.  Some types of armor offer better


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          protection than others.  Your armor class is a  measure  of  this
          protection.  Armor class (AC) is measured as in AD&D, with 10 be-
          ing the equivalent of no armor, and lower numbers meaning  better
          armor.   Each  suit  of armor which exists in AD&D gives the same
          protection in SLASH'EM.  Here is an (incomplete) list of the  ar-
          mor classes provided by various suits of armor:

                             dragon scale mail         1
                             crystal plate mail        3
                             plate mail                3
                             bronze plate mail         4
                             splint mail               4
                             banded mail               4
                             elven mithril-coat        5
                             chain mail                5
                             scale mail                6
                             ring mail                 7
                             studded leather armor     7
                             leather armor             8
                             no armor                 10

               You can also wear other pieces of armor (ex. helmets, boots,
          shields, cloaks) to lower your armor class even further, but  you
          can  only  wear one item of each category (one suit of armor, one
          cloak, one helmet, one shield, and so on) at a time.

               If a piece of armor is enchanted, its armor protection  will
          be  better  (or  worse)  than normal, and its ``plus'' (or minus)
          will subtract from your armor class.  For  example,  a  +1  chain
          mail  would  give  you  better protection than normal chain mail,
          lowering your armor class one unit further to 4.  When you put on
          a  piece  of  armor, you immediately find out the armor class and
          any ``plusses'' it provides.  Cursed pieces of armor usually have
          negative enchantments (minuses) in addition to being unremovable.

               Many types of armor are subject to some kind of damage  like
          rust.   Such damage can be repaired.  Some types or armor may in-
          hibit spell casting.

               The commands to use armor are `W' (wear) and `T' (take off).
          The  `A'  command  can  also be used to take off armor as well as
          other worn items.

          7.4.  Food (`%')

               Food is necessary to survive.  If you go  too  long  without
          eating  you  will  faint, and eventually die of starvation.  Some
          types of food will spoil, and become unhealthy  to  eat,  if  not
          protected.  Food stored in ice boxes or tins (``cans'') will usu-
          ally stay fresh, but ice boxes are heavy, and tins take  a  while
          to open.

               When you kill monsters, they usually leave corpses which are
          also ``food.''  Many, but not all, of these are edible; some also


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          give  you special powers when you eat them.  A good rule of thumb
          is ``you are what you eat.''

               You can name one food item after something you like  to  eat
          with the fruit option, if your dungeon has it.

               The command to eat food is `e'.

          7.5.  Scrolls (`?')

               Scrolls  are labeled with various titles, probably chosen by
          ancient wizards for their amusement value (ex.  ``READ  ME,''  or
          ``HOLY BIBLE'' backwards).  Scrolls disappear after you read them
          (except for blank ones, without magic spells on them).

               One of the most useful of these is the scroll  of  identify,
          which can be used to determine what another object is, whether it
          is cursed or blessed, and how many uses it has  left.   Some  ob-
          jects  of  subtle  enchantment  are difficult to identify without
          these.

               A mail daemon may run up and deliver mail to you as a scroll
          of  mail  (on  versions compiled with this feature).  To use this
          feature on versions where SLASH'EM mail delivery is triggered  by
          electronic  mail  appearing  in your system mailbox, you must let
          SLASH'EM know where to look for new mail by setting the  ``MAIL''
          environment  variable  to the file name of your mailbox.  You may
          also want to set the ``MAILREADER'' environment variable  to  the
          file  name  of  your favorite reader, so SLASH'EM can shell to it
          when you read the scroll.  On versions of SLASH'EM where mail  is
          randomly  generated internal to the game, these environment vari-
          ables are ignored.  You can disable the mail  daemon  by  turning
          off the mail option.

               The command to read a scroll is `r'.

          7.6.  Potions (`!')

               Potions  are distinguished by the color of the liquid inside
          the flask.  They disappear after you quaff them.

               Clear potions are potions of  water.   Sometimes  these  are
          blessed or cursed, resulting in holy or unholy water.  Holy water
          is the bane of the undead, so potions  of  holy  water  are  good
          things  to throw (`t') at them.  It is also sometimes very useful
          to dip (``#dip'') an object into a potion.

               The command to drink a potion is `q' (quaff).

          7.7.  Wands (`/')

               Magic wands usually have  multiple  magical  charges.   Some
          wands  are directional--you must give a direction in which to zap
          them.  You can also zap them at yourself (just give a `.' or  `s'


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          for the direction). Be warned, however, for this is often unwise.
          Other wands are nondirectional--they don't require  a  direction.
          The  number  of  charges in a wand is random and decreases by one
          whenever you use it.

               When the number of charges left in a wand becomes zero,  at-
          tempts  to use the wand will usually result in nothing happening.
          Occasionally, however, it may be possible to squeeze the last few
          mana points from an otherwise spent wand.

               In a truly desperate situation, when your back is up against
          the wall, you might decide to go for broke and break  your  wand.
          This  is  not  for the faint of heart.  Doing so will almost cer-
          tainly cause a catastrophic release of magical energies.

               The command to use a wand is `z' (zap).  To break  one,  use
          the `a' (apply) command.

          7.8.  Rings (`=')

               Rings  are very useful items, since they are relatively per-
          manent magic, unlike the usually  fleeting  effects  of  potions,
          scrolls, and wands.

               Putting  on  a  ring activates its magic.  You can wear only
          two rings, one on each ring finger.

               Most rings also cause you to grow hungry more  rapidly,  the
          rate varying with the type of ring.

               The commands to use rings are `P' (put on) and `R' (remove).

          7.9.  Spell books (`+')

               Spell books are tomes of mighty magic.   When  studied  with
          the `r' (read) command, they bestow the knowledge of a spell--un-
          less the attempt backfires.  Reading a cursed spell book  or  one
          with  mystic runes beyond your ken can be harmful to your health!

               A spell (even when learned) can also backfire when you  cast
          it.   If  you  attempt to cast a spell well above your experience
          level, or cast it at a time when your luck is  particularly  bad,
          you  can  end up wasting both the energy and the time required in
          casting.

               Casting a spell calls forth  magical  energies  and  focuses
          them with your naked mind.  Releasing the magical energy releases
          some of your memory of the spell with it.  Each time you  cast  a
          spell, your familiarity with it will dwindle, until you eventual-
          ly forget the details completely and must relearn it.

               Casting a spell also requires flexible movement, and wearing
          various types of armor may interfere with that.



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               The  ``#enhance''  command  will  be present if the ``weapon
          skills'' feature is enabled, and deals with your  proficiency  in
          various  types of spells (as well as weapons).  Skilled adventur-
          ers can command awesome spells at their fingertips.

               The command to read a spell book is the same as for scrolls,
          `r'  (read).   The  `+' command lists your current spells and the
          number of spell points they  require.   The  `Z'  (cast)  command
          casts  a  spell.  The ``#enhance'' extended command advances your
          spellcasting skills.

          7.10.  Tools (`(')

               Tools are miscellaneous objects with various purposes.  Some
          tools,  like  wands, have a limited number of uses.  For example,
          lamps burn out after a while.  Other tools are containers,  which
          objects can be placed into or taken out of.

               The command to use tools is `a' (apply).

          7.10.1.  Chests and boxes

               You  may  encounter  chests or boxes in your travels.  These
          can be opened with the ``#loot'' extended command when  they  are
          on the floor, or with the `a' (apply) command when you are carry-
          ing one.  However, chests are often locked, and are in  any  case
          unwieldy  objects.   You must set one down before unlocking it by
          kicking it, using a key or lock-picking tool with the `a' (apply)
          command,  or  by  using  a  weapon  to  force  the  lock with the
          ``#force'' extended command.

               Some chests are trapped, causing nasty things to happen when
          you unlock or open them.  You can check for and try to deactivate
          traps with the ``#untrap'' extended command.

          7.11.  Amulets (`"')

               Amulets are very similar to rings, and often more  powerful.
          Like rings, amulets have various magical properties, some benefi-
          cial, some harmful, which are activated by putting them on.

               Only one amulet may be worn at a time, around your neck.

               The commands to use amulets are the same as for  rings,  `P'
          (put on) and `R' (remove).

          7.12.  Gems (`*')

               Some  gems  are valuable, and can be sold for a lot of gold.
          They are also a far more efficient way of carrying  your  riches.
          Valuable gems increase your score if you bring them with you when
          you exit.




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               Other small rocks are also categorized as gems, but they are
          much  less  valuable.  All rocks, however, can be used as projec-
          tile weapons (if you have a sling).  In  the  most  desperate  of
          cases, you can still throw them by hand.

          7.13.  Large rocks (``')

               Statues  and  boulders  are not particularly useful, and are
          generally heavy.  It is rumored that some statues  are  not  what
          they seem.

               Very  large humanoids (giants and their ilk) have been known
          to use boulders as weapons.

          7.14.  Gold (`$')

               Gold adds to your score, and you can  buy  things  in  shops
          with  it.  Your version of SLASH'EM may display how much gold you
          have on the status line.  If not, the `$' command will count  it.
          There  are a number of monsters in the dungeon that may be influ-
          enced by the amount of gold you are carrying (shopkeepers aside).


          8.  Options

               Due  to variations in personal tastes and conceptions of how
          SLASH'EM should do things, there  are  options  you  can  set  to
          change how SLASH'EM behaves.

          8.1.  Setting the options

               Options  may  be  set in a number of ways.  Within the game,
          the `O' command allows you to view all options and change most of
          them.   You can also set options automatically by placing them in
          the SLASHEMOPTIONS environment variable  or  in  a  configuration
          file.   Some  versions  of  SLASH'EM also have front-end programs
          that allow you to set options before starting the game.

          8.2.  Using the SLASHEMOPTIONS environment variable

               The SLASHEMOPTIONS variable is  a  comma-separated  list  of
          initial  values for the various options.  Some can only be turned
          on or off.  You turn one of these on by adding the  name  of  the
          option to the list, and turn it off by typing a `!' or ``no'' be-
          fore the name.  Others take a character string as a  value.   You
          can  set  string  options by typing the option name, a colon, and
          then the value of the string.  The value  is  terminated  by  the
          next comma or the end of string.

               For example, to set up an environment variable so that ``fe-
          male'' is on, ``autopickup'' is off, the name is  set  to  ``Blue
          Meanie'', and the fruit is set to ``papaya'', you would enter the
          command



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               % setenv SLASHEMOPTIONS "female,\!autopickup,name:Blue Meanie,fruit:papaya"

          in csh (note the need to escape the ! since it's special  to  the
          shell), or

               $ SLASHEMOPTIONS="female,!autopickup,name:Blue Meanie,fruit:papaya"
               $ export SLASHEMOPTIONS

          in sh or ksh.

          8.3.  Using a configuration file

               Any  line  in  the  configuration  file  starting with ``OP-
          TIONS='' may be filled out with options in the same syntax as  in
          SLASHEMOPTIONS.   Any  line  starting  with  ``DUNGEON='',  ``EF-
          FECTS='', ``MONSTERS='', ``OBJECTS='', or ``TRAPS='' is taken  as
          defining the corresponding dungeon, effects, monsters, objects or
          traps option in a different syntax, a sequence of decimal numbers
          giving  the  character position in the current font to be used in
          displaying each entry.  Such a sequence can be continued to  mul-
          tiple  lines  by putting a `\' at the end of each line to be con-
          tinued.  Any line starting with `#' is treated as a comment.

               The default name of the configuration file varies on differ-
          ent  operating systems, but SLASHEMOPTIONS can also be set to the
          full name of a file you want to  use  (possibly  preceded  by  an
          `@').

          8.4.  Customization options

               Here are explanations of what the various options do.  Char-
          acter strings that are too long may be truncated.   Some  of  the
          options listed may be inactive in your dungeon.

          autopickup
               Pick up things you move onto by default (default on).

          badgername
               Name your starting badger (ex. ``badgername:Jack'').  Cannot
               be set with the `O' command.

          batname
               Name your starting bat (ex. ``batname:Drake'').   Cannot  be
               set with the `O' command.

          BIOS
               Use  BIOS  calls to update the screen display quickly and to
               read the keyboard (allowing the use of arrow keys  to  move)
               on machines with an IBM PC compatible BIOS ROM (default off,
               OS/2, PC, and ST SLASH'EM only).

          catname
               Name your starting cat (ex. ``catname:Tabby'').   Cannot  be
               set with the `O' command.


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          checkpoint
               Save game state after each level change, for possible recov-
               ery after program crash (default on).

          color
               Use color for different monsters, objects, and dungeon  fea-
               tures (default on for microcomputers).

          confirm
               Have  user  confirm  attacks on pets, shopkeepers, and other
               peaceable creatures (default on).

          DECgraphics
               Use a predefined selection of characters from  the  DEC  VT-
               xxx/DEC  Rainbow/ANSI  line-drawing character set to display
               the dungeon/effects/traps instead of having to define a full
               graphics  set yourself (default off).  This option also sets
               up proper handling of graphics characters  for  such  termi-
               nals,  so you should specify it when appropriate even if you
               override the selections with your own graphics strings.

          disclose
               Offer to disclose various information  when  the  game  ends
               (default  all).   The possibilities are identifying your in-
               ventory ('i'), disclosing your attributes ('a'), summarizing
               monsters  that  have been vanquished ('v'), and listing mon-
               ster species that have been genocided ('g').  Note that  the
               vanquished  monsters  list  includes  all monsters killed by
               traps and each other as well as by you.

          dogname
               Name your starting dog (ex.  ``dogname:Fang'').   Cannot  be
               set with the `O' command.

          dungeon
               Set the graphics symbols for displaying the dungeon (default
               `` |--------||.-|++.##<><>_|\\##{}.}..## #}'').  The dungeon
               option  should be followed by a string of 1-38 characters to
               be used instead of the default map-drawing characters.   The
               dungeon  map  will use the characters you specify instead of
               the default symbols, and default symbols for any you do  not
               specify.  Remember that you may need to escape some of these
               characters if, for example, you use csh.

               Note that this option string is escape-processed in  conven-
               tional  C  fashion.  This means that `\' is a prefix to take
               the following character literally, and not as a special pre-
               fix.   The special escape form `\m' switches on the meta bit
               in the following character, and the `^'  prefix  causes  the
               following character to be treated as a control character.

               The  order  of  the  symbols is:  solid rock, vertical wall,
               horizontal wall, upper left corner, upper right corner, low-
               er  left  corner,  lower  right corner, cross wall, upward T


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               wall, downward T wall, leftward T wall, rightward T wall, no
               door,  vertical  open  door,  horizontal open door, vertical
               closed door, horizontal closed door, floor of a  room,  dark
               corridor,  lit  corridor, stairs up, stairs down, ladder up,
               ladder down, altar, grave,  throne,  kitchen  sink,  toilet,
               fountain,  pool  or  moat, ice, lava, vertical lowered draw-
               bridge, horizontal lowered drawbridge, vertical raised draw-
               bridge,  horizontal raised drawbridge, air, cloud, under wa-
               ter.

               You might want to use `+' for the corners and T walls for  a
               more  aesthetic,  boxier display.  Note that in the next re-
               lease, new symbols may be added, or the present  ones  rear-
               ranged.

               Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          effects
               Set the graphics symbols for displaying special effects (de-
               fault ``|-\\/*!)(0#@*/-\\||\\-//-\\| |\\-/'').  The  effects
               option  should be followed by a string of 1-29 characters to
               be used instead of the default  special-effects  characters.
               This  string is subjected to the same processing as the dun-
               geon option.

               The order of the  symbols  is:   vertical  beam,  horizontal
               beam,  left  slant,  right slant, digging beam, camera flash
               beam, left boomerang, right boomerang,  four  glyphs  giving
               the  sequence  for magic resistance displays; the eight sur-
               rounding glyphs for swallowed display; nine glyphs  for  ex-
               plosions.  An explosion consists of three rows (top, middle,
               and bottom) of three characters.  The explosion is  centered
               in the center of this 3 by 3 array.

               Note  that in the next release, new symbols may be added, or
               the present ones rearranged.

               Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          female
               Set your sex (default off).  Cannot be set with the `O' com-
               mand.

          fixinv
               An  object's inventory letter sticks to it when it's dropped
               (default on).  If this is off, dropping an object shifts all
               the remaining inventory letters.

          fruit
               Name   a   fruit  after  something  you  enjoy  eating  (ex.
               ``fruit:mango'') (default ``slime mold'').  Basically a nos-
               talgic  whimsy  that  SLASH'EM  uses from time to time.  You
               should set this to something you find more  appetizing  than
               slime  mold.   Apples,  oranges,  pears, bananas, and melons


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               already exist in SLASH'EM, so don't use those.

          ghoulname
               Name your starting ghoul (ex. ``ghoulname:Casper'').  Cannot
               be set with the `O' command.

          help If  more  information  is  available for an object looked at
               with the `/' command, ask if you want  to  see  it  (default
               on).  Turning  help off makes just looking at things faster,
               since you aren't interrupted with the ``More info?'' prompt,
               but  it  also  means  that  you  might miss some interesting
               and/or important information.

          hilite_pet
               Visually distinguish  pets  from  similar  animals  (default
               off).   In  text windowing, use text highlighting when color
               is turned off; with X tiles, display  a  heart  symbol  near
               pets.

          IBMgraphics
               Use  a predefined selection of IBM extended ASCII characters
               to display the dungeon/effects/traps instead  of  having  to
               define a full graphics set yourself (default off).  This op-
               tion also sets up proper handling of graphics characters for
               such  terminals,  so  you should specify it when appropriate
               even if you override the selections with your  own  graphics
               strings.

          ignintr
               Ignore interrupt signals, including breaks (default off).

          keep_savefile
               Keeps the save file after restore.  SLASH'EM usually deletes
               your savefile after you restore,   making  death  permanent.
               This  option  can  allow  you to restore from the last save.
               (default off).

          legacy
               Display an introductory message when starting the game  (de-
               fault on).

          lit_corridor
               Show corridor squares seen by night vision or a light source
               held by your character as lit (default off).

          mail   Enable

          male
               Set your sex (default on, most hackers are male).  Cannot be
               set with the `O' command.

          menustyle
               Controls  the interface used when you need to choose various
               objects (in response to the  Drop  command,  for  instance).


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               The value specified should be the first letter of one of the
               following:   traditional,  combination,  partial,  or  full.
               Traditional  was  the  only  interface available for earlier
               versions; it consists of a prompt for object  class  charac-
               ters,  followed  by an object-by-object prompt for all items
               matching the selected object class(es).  Combination  starts
               with  a  prompt  for  object class(es) of interest, but then
               displays a menu of matching objects  rather  than  prompting
               one-by-one.   Partial  skips  the object class filtering and
               immediately displays a menu of all objects.  Full displays a
               menu  of  object classes rather than a character prompt, and
               then a menu of matching objects for selection.

          menu_deselect_all
               Menu character accelerator to deselect all items in a  menu.
               Implemented by the X11 and tty ports.  Default '-'.

          menu_deselect_page
               Menu  character  accelerator deselect all items on this page
               of a menu.  Implemented only by the tty port.  Default  '\'.

          menu_first_page
               Menu  character  accelerator  to jump to the first page in a
               menu.  Implemented only by the tty port.  Default '^'.

          menu_invert_all
               Menu character accelerator to invert all items  in  a  menu.
               Implemented by the X11 and tty ports.  Default '@'.

          menu_invert_page
               Menu  character accelerator to invert all items on this page
               of a menu.  Implemented only by the tty port.  Default  '~'.

          menu_last_page
               Menu  character  accelerator  to  jump to the last page in a
               menu.  Implemented only by the tty port.  Default '|'.

          menu_next_page
               Menu character accelerator to goto the next menu page.   Im-
               plemented only by the tty port.  Default '>'.

          menu_previous_page
               Menu  character  accelerator to goto the previous menu page.
               Implemented only by the tty port.  Default '<'.

          menu_search
               Menu character accelerator to search for a menu  item.   Im-
               plemented only by the X11 port.  Default ':'.

          menu_select_all
               Menu  character  accelerator  to select all items in a menu.
               Implemented by the X11 and tty ports.  Default '.'.




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          menu_select_page
               Menu character accelerator to select all items on this  page
               of  a menu.  Implemented only by the tty port.  Default ','.

          monsters
               Set the characters used to display monster classes  (default
               ``abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ@ '&;:~]'').
               This string is subjected to the same processing as the  dun-
               geon  option.   The order of the symbols is ant or other in-
               sect, blob, cockatrice, dog or other canine, eye or  sphere,
               feline,  gremlin,  humanoid,  imp  or  minor  demon,  jelly,
               kobold, leprechaun, mimic, nymph, orc,  piercer,  quadruped,
               rodent,  spider,  trapper  or lurker above, unicorn, vortex,
               worm, xan or other mythical/fantastic insect, light,  zruty,
               angelic  being,  bat,  centaur, dragon, elemental, fungus or
               mold, gnome, giant humanoid, invisible stalker,  jabberwock,
               Keystone  Kop,  lich,  mummy,  naga,  ogre, pudding or ooze,
               quantum mechanic, rust monster, snake,  troll,  umber  hulk,
               vampire,  wraith,  xorn,  yeti  or ape or other large beast,
               zombie, human, ghost, golem,  demon,  sea  monster,  lizard,
               long  worm tail, and mimic.  Cannot be set with the `O' com-
               mand.

          msghistory
               The number of top line messages to save (and recall with ^P)
               (default 20).  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          name
               Set your character's name (defaults to your user name).  You
               can also set your character class by appending  a  dash  and
               the first letter of the character class (that is, by suffix-
               ing one of -A -B -C -E -H -K -P -R -S -T -V -W).  If  -@  is
               used  for the class, then a random one will be automatically
               chosen.  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          news
               Read the SLASH'EM news file, if present (default on).  Since
               the  news  is shown at the beginning of the game, there's no
               point in setting this with the `O' command.

          null
               Send padding nulls to the terminal (default off).

          number_pad
               Use the number keys to move instead of  [yuhjklbn]  (default
               off).

          objects
               Set  the  characters used to display object classes (default
               ``])[="(%!?+/$*`0_.'').  This string  is  subjected  to  the
               same  processing  as  the  dungeon option.  The order of the
               symbols is illegal-object (should never  be  seen),  weapon,
               armor, ring, amulet, tool, food, potion, scroll, spell book,
               wand, gold, gem or  rock,  boulder  or  statue,  iron  ball,


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               chain, and venom.  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          packorder
               Specify   the   order  to  list  object  types  in  (default
               ``\")[%?+/=!(*`0_'').  The value of this option should be  a
               string  containing the symbols for the various object types.

          perm_invent
               If true, always display your current inventory in a  window.
               This  only  makes sense for windowing system interfaces that
               implement this feature.

          pettype
               Specify the type of your initial pet, if you are  playing  a
               character class that uses both types of pets.  Possible val-
               ues are ``cat'' and ``dog''.  Cannot be  set  with  the  `O'
               command.

          pickup_burden
               Specify  at  what  encumberence level to begin prompting for
               confirmation when picking up objects.  Default  is  moderate
               encumberence.

          pickup_types
               Specify  the object types to be picked up when autopickup is
               on.  Default is all types.

          preload_tiles
               For the protected mode MSDOS version, control whether  tiles
               get  pre-loaded into RAM at the start of the game.  Doing so
               enhances performance of the tile  graphics,  but  uses  more
               memory. (default on).  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          ratname
               Name your starting rat (ex. ``ratname:Sherwin'').  Cannot be
               set with the `O' command.

          rawio
               Force raw (non-cbreak) mode for faster output and more  bul-
               letproof  input  (MS-DOS  sometimes treats `^P' as a printer
               toggle without it) (default off).  Note:  DEC Rainbows  hang
               if this is turned on.  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          reddragonname
               Name  your starting red dragon (ex. ``reddragonname:Fyre'').
               Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          rest_on_space
               Make the space bar a synonym for the `.' (rest) command (de-
               fault off).

          safe_pet
               Prevent  you  from  (knowingly) attacking your pets (default
               on).


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          snakename
               Name your starting snake (ex. ``snakename:Joe'').  Cannot be
               set with the `O' command.  keep_savefile is also on.

          scores
               Control  what  parts  of the score list you are shown at the
               end  (ex.   ``scores:5  top  scores/4  around  my  score/own
               scores'').   Only  the  first  letter of each category (`t',
               `a', or `o') is necessary.

          showexp
               Show your accumulated experience points on bottom line  (de-
               fault off).

          showscore
               Show  your approximate accumulated score on bottom line (de-
               fault off).

          showdmg
               Show damage inflicted/damage received (default off).

          showweight
               Show weight in inventory (default off).

          silent Suppress

          sortpack
               Sort the pack contents by  type  when  displaying  inventory
               (default on).

          standout
               Boldface monsters and ``--More--'' (default off).

          time
               Show  the elapsed game time in turns on bottom line (default
               off).

          timed_delay
               When pausing momentarily for display effect,  such  as  with
               explosions and moving objects, use a timer rather than send-
               ing extra characters to the screen.  (Applies to ``tty'' in-
               terface  only;  ``X11''  interface always uses a timer based
               delay.  The default is on if configured into the program.)

          tombstone
               Draw a tombstone graphic upon your death (default on).

          toptenwin
               Put the ending display in a SLASH'EM window  instead  of  on
               stdout  (default  off).  Setting this option makes the score
               list visible when a windowing version of SLASH'EM is started
               without  a  parent window, but it no longer leaves the score
               list around after game end on a terminal or  emulating  win-
               dow.


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          traps
               Set  the  graphics  symbols  for  displaying  traps (default
               ``^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^#^^^^'').  The  traps  option  should  be
               followed  by  a string of 1-22 characters to be used instead
               of the default traps characters.  This string  is  subjected
               to the same processing as the dungeon option.

               The  order of the symbols is: arrow trap, dart trap, falling
               rock trap, squeaky board,  bear  trap,  land  mine,  rolling
               boulder  trap, sleeping gas trap, rust trap, fire trap, pit,
               spiked pit, hole, trap door, teleportation trap, level tele-
               porter,  magic  portal,  web, statue trap, magic trap, anti-
               magic field, polymorph trap.

               Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          verbose
               Provide more commentary during the game (default on).

          videocolors
               Set the color palette for PC systems using NO_TERMS (default
               4-2-6-1-5-3-15-12-10-14-9-13-11).   The  order  of colors is
               red,  green,  brown,  blue,  magenta,  cyan,   bright.white,
               bright.red, bright.green, yellow, bright.blue, bright.magen-
               ta, and bright.cyan.  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          videoshades
               Set the intensity level of the three gray  scales  available
               (default  dark normal light, PC SLASH'EM only).  If the game
               display is difficult to read, try adjusting these scales; if
               this  does  not  correct the problem, try !color.  Cannot be
               set with the `O' command.

          whitedragonname
               Name  your   starting   white   dragon   (ex.   ``whitedrag-
               onname:Snough'').  Cannot be set with the `O' command.

          windowtype
               Select  which  windowing  system  to use, such as ``tty'' or
               ``X11'' (default depends on version).  Cannot  be  set  with
               the `O' command.

          wolfname
               Name your starting wolf (ex. ``wolfname:Beast'').  Cannot be
               set with the `O' command.


          9.  Scoring

               SLASH'EM maintains a list of the top scores  or  scorers  on
          your machine, depending on how it is set up.  In the latter case,
          each account on the machine can post only one  non-winning  score
          on  this  list.   If  you  score higher than someone else on this
          list, or better your previous score, you will be inserted in  the


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          proper  place  under your current name.  How many scores are kept
          can also be set up when SLASH'EM is compiled.

               Your score is chiefly based upon  how  much  experience  you
          gained, how much loot you accumulated, how deep you explored, and
          how the game ended.  If you quit the game, you escape with all of
          your  gold  intact.   If, however, you get killed in the Mazes of
          Menace, the guild will only hear about 90% of your gold when your
          corpse  is  discovered  (adventurers  have  been known to collect
          finder's fees).  So, consider whether you want to take  one  last
          hit  at  that  monster  and  possibly live, or quit and stop with
          whatever you have.  If you quit, you keep all your gold,  but  if
          you swing and live, you might find more.

               If  you  just want to see what the current top players/games
          list is, you can type SLASH'EM -s all on most versions.


          10.  Explore mode

               SLASH'EM is an intricate and difficult game.  Novices  might
          falter in fear, aware of their ignorance of the means to survive.
          Well, fear not.  Your dungeon may come  equipped  with  an  ``ex-
          plore''  or  ``discovery'' mode that enables you to keep old save
          files and cheat death, at the paltry cost of not getting  on  the
          high score list.

               There  are  two  ways  of  enabling explore mode.  One is to
          start the game with the -X switch.  The other is to issue the `X'
          command  while  already  playing the game.  The other benefits of
          explore mode are left for the intrepid reader to discover.


          11.  Credits

               The original hack game was  modeled  on  the  Berkeley  UNIX
          rogue  game.   Large  portions  of  this  paper  were shamelessly
          cribbed from A Guide to the Dungeons of Doom, by Michael  C.  Toy
          and  Kenneth  C.  R. C. Arnold.  Small portions were adapted from
          Further Exploration of the Dungeons of Doom, by Ken Arromdee.

               NetHack is the product of literally dozens of people's work.
          Main  events  in the course of the game development are described
          below:


               Jay Fenlason wrote the original Hack, with help  from  Kenny
          Woodland, Mike Thome and Jon Payne.

               Andries Brouwer did a major re-write, transforming Hack into
          a very different game, and published (at  least)  three  versions
          (1.0.1, 1.0.2, and 1.0.3) for UNIX machines to the Usenet.




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               Don  G. Kneller ported Hack 1.0.3 to Microsoft C and MS-DOS,
          producing PC HACK 1.01e, added support for DEC  Rainbow  graphics
          in  version 1.03g, and went on to produce at least four more ver-
          sions (3.0, 3.2, 3.51, and 3.6).

               R. Black ported PC HACK 3.51 to  Lattice  C  and  the  Atari
          520/1040ST, producing ST Hack 1.03.

               Mike Stephenson merged these various versions back together,
          incorporating many of the added features,  and  produced  NetHack
          1.4.   He  then  coordinated a cast of thousands in enhancing and
          debugging NetHack 1.4 and released NetHack versions 2.2 and  2.3.

               Later, Mike coordinated a major rewrite of the game, heading
          a team which included Ken Arromdee, Jean-Christophe Collet, Steve
          Creps, Eric Hendrickson, Izchak Miller, John Rupley, Mike Threep-
          oint, and Janet Walz, to produce NetHack 3.0c.

               NetHack 3.0 was ported to the Atari by  Eric  R.  Smith,  to
          OS/2  by  Timo Hakulinen, and to VMS by David Gentzel.  The three
          of them and Kevin Darcy later joined the main development team to
          produce subsequent revisions of 3.0.

               Olaf  Seibert ported NetHack 2.3 and 3.0 to the Amiga.  Norm
          Meluch, Stephen Spackman and Pierre  Martineau  designed  overlay
          code  for  PC  NetHack 3.0.  Johnny Lee ported NetHack 3.0 to the
          Macintosh.  Along with various other Dungeoneers, they  continued
          to  enhance  the PC, Macintosh, and Amiga ports through the later
          revisions of 3.0.

               A scant one month before the next major version  release  of
          Nethack,  two  adventurous souls undertook their own modification
          to the sacred Nethack formula. Tom Proudfoot and  Yuval  released
          Nethack++,   which  was rapidly renamed Nethack--,  contained new
          monsters,  items and other miscellaneous modifications.

               Headed by Mike Stephenson and coordinated by  Izchak  Miller
          and  Janet  Walz, the development team which now included Ken Ar-
          romdee, David Cohrs, Jean-Christophe Collet,  Kevin  Darcy,  Matt
          Day,  Timo Hakulinen, Steve Linhart, Dean Luick, Pat Rankin, Eric
          Raymond, and Eric Smith undertook  a  radical  revision  of  3.0.
          They re-structured the game's design, and re-wrote major parts of
          the code.  They added multiple dungeons, a new  display,  special
          individual  character  quests,  a  new endgame and many other new
          features, and produced NetHack 3.1.

               Ken Lorber, Gregg Wonderly and Greg Olson,  with  help  from
          Richard  Addison,  Mike  Passaretti,  and Olaf Seibert, developed
          NetHack 3.1 for the Amiga.

               Norm Meluch and Kevin Smolkowski, with help from Carl  Sche-
          lin, Stephen Spackman, Steve VanDevender, and Paul Winner, ported
          NetHack 3.1 to the PC.



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               Jon Watte and Hao-yang Wang, with help from Ross Brown, Mike
          Engber,  David  Hairston, Michael Hamel, Jonathan Handler, Johnny
          Lee, Tim Lennan, Rob Menke, and Andy Swanson,  developed  NetHack
          3.1 for the Macintosh, porting it for MPW.  Building on their de-
          velopment, Barton House added a Think C port.

               Timo Hakulinen ported NetHack 3.1 to OS/2.  Eric Smith port-
          ed  NetHack  3.1 to the Atari.  Pat Rankin, with help from Joshua
          Delahunty, is responsible for the VMS  version  of  NetHack  3.1.
          Michael Allison ported NetHack 3.1 to Windows NT.

               Dean  Luick,  with  help from David Cohrs, developed NetHack
          3.1 for X11.

               Time passed,  and Nethack-- was ported to 3.11 by Chris.

               Stephen White then released his own  modification  known  as
          Nethack  Plus,   which  contained  new  character classes.  Unbe-
          knownst to the world at large,  Tom Proudfoot  took  this  source
          and combined it with his Nethack--.  Stephen White went on to add
          weapon skills,  which were eventually integrated  into  the  next
          version of Nethack,  and other features.

               In February 1996,  Tom Proudfoot released SLASH V1.  Includ-
          ing part of Stephen White's Nethack Plus and his  own  Nethack--,
          leaving  unmentioned his own slew of further modifications,  this
          is perhaps the best known of the Nethack modifications.  Six ver-
          sions of this,  ending with SLASH V6,  are known to exist.

               The 3.2 development team, comprised of: Michael Allison; Ken
          Arromdee; David Cohrs; Jessie Collet; Steve Creps;  Kevin  Darcy;
          Timo  Hakulinen;  Steve  Linhart;  Dean  Luick;  Pat Rankin; Eric
          Smith; Mike Stephenson; Janet Walz;  and,  Paul  Winner,  release
          version 3.2 in April of 1996.

               Version  3.2 marks the tenth anniversary of the formation of
          the development team.  In a testament to their dedication to  the
          game,  all  thirteen members of the original development team re-
          mained on the team at the start of work on the  current  release.
          During  the interval between the release of 3.1.3 and 3.2, one of
          the founding members of the development team, Dr. Izchak  Miller,
          was  diagnosed  with cancer and passed away.  This release of the
          game is dedicated to him by the development and porting teams.

               Pat Rankin maintained 3.2 for VMS.

               Michael Allison, Yitzhak Sapir, and Paul Winner,  with  help
          from  Steve  Linhart,  Kevin  Smolkowski,  Mike  Stephenson,  and
          Stephen White ported 3.2 for MSDOS.

               Keizo Yamamoto and Ken Washikita ported 3.2 for the NEC 98xx
          machines popular in Japan.




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          SLASH'EM Guidebook                                             35



               Ken  Lorber, Andy Church, and Gregg Wonderly, with help from
          Richard Addison, ported 3.2 for the Amiga.

               Dean Luick ported 3.2 to the Macintosh.

               Eric Smith and Warwick Allison ported 3.2 for the Ataris.

               Michael Allison ported 3.2  for  the  Microsoft  Windows  NT
          platform.

               Timo Hakulinen remains responsible for the OS/2 port.

               Larry Stewart-Zerba set along a different track - to enhance
          the spellcasting abilities of the Wizard.   Thus, in April  1996,
          he  released  version  0.1 of the Wizard Patch.  By July,  he was
          joined by Warwick Allison and version 0.4 of the Wizard Patch was
          released.  The final update came in September 1996,  with the re-
          lease of Wizard Patch 0.7.

               SLASH V6 was picked up by Enrico Horn managed to synchronize
          it  with the 3.2 source.  The new SLASH 4.1.2 was released as far
          back as November 1996 went through at least 4 editlevels (E5, E6,
          E7)  with  the  latest  version being 4.1.2E8,  synchronized with
          Nethack 3.2.2 and the Blackmarket option available,  released  in
          June 1997.

               Nathan  La  began  the arduous task of drawing tiles for the
          SLASH monsters.

               Kentaro Shirakata ported SLASH 4.1.2E8 to Unix.

               Lief Clennon ported SLASH 4.1.2E8 to OS/2 EMX.

               Romain Dolbeau ported SLASH 4.1.2E8 to Macintosh.

               Warren Cheung combined SLASH 4.1.2 and Wizard Patch to  cre-
          ate  SLASH'EM  0.1 in November 1997.  Several revisions including
          new spells and other minor additions have led to SLASH'EM  0.0.3.
          Steven Uy has generously made additional modifications.

               Dirk  Schoenberger has continued updating the SLASH/SLASH'EM
          monster tiles.  He has also ported SLASH'EM to Linux.

               Lief Clennon ported SLASH'EM to OS/2 EMX.

               Kevin Hugo ported SLASH'EM to Macintosh,  and has also  con-
          tributed additional changes and improvements.

               Robin Johnson finished arduous task of drawing tiles for the
          SLASH'EM monsters.  He has also contributed many more new  tiles.


               From  time  to  time,  some depraved individual out there in
          netland sends a particularly intriguing modification to help  out


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          SLASH'EM Guidebook                                             36



          with  the  game.   The Gods of the Dungeon sometimes make note of
          the names of the worst of these miscreants in this, the  list  of
          Dungeoneers:


                   Andy Church           Helge Hafting           Mike Gallop
                  Andy Swanson           Izchak Miller         Mike Passaretti
                  Ari Huttunen             Janet Walz          Mike Stephenson
                  Barton House       Jean-Christophe Collet      Norm Meluch
               Benson I. Margulies       Jochen Erwied          Olaf Seibert
                    Bill Dyer             John Kallen            Pat Rankin
                Boudewijn Wayers          John Rupley            Paul Winner
                 Bruce Holloway           John S. Bien        Pierre Martineau
                 Bruce Mewborne            Johnny Lee            Ralf Brown
                  Carl Schelin             Jon W{tte           Richard Addison
                   David Cohrs          Jonathan Handler      Richard P. Hughey
                  David Gentzel         Joshua Delahunty          Rob Menke
                 David Hairston          Keizo Yamamoto        Roland McGrath
                   Dean Luick             Ken Arromdee           Ross Brown
                    Del Lamb               Ken Lorber          Scott R. Turner
                  Deron Meranda          Ken Washikita        Stephen Spackman
                   Eric Backus            Kevin Darcy           Stephen White
                Eric Hendrickson          Kevin Sitze            Steve Creps
                  Eric R. Smith         Kevin Smolkowski        Steve Linhart
                 Eric S. Raymond          Kevin Sweet         Steve VanDevender
                Frederick Roeber         Mark Gooderum           Tim Lennan
                   Gil Neiger             Matthew Day          Timo Hakulinen
                   Greg Laskin            Merlyn LeRoy            Tom Almy
                   Greg Olson           Michael Allison           Tom West
                 Gregg Wonderly          Michael Hamel         Warwick Allison
                  Hao-yang Wang         Michael Sokolov         Yitzhak Sapir

          Brand  and  product names are trademarks or registered trademarks
          of their respective holders.






















          SLASH'EM 0.0.3                                        Feb 3, 1997



