From: Eric S. Raymond Date: Wed, 31 Dec 2003 08:57:52 +0000 (+0000) Subject: Initial revision X-Git-Tag: 6-2~7 X-Git-Url: http://thyrsus.com/gitweb/?a=commitdiff_plain;h=507590d3165130364f4d182f5f3a5b810a0f1e72;p=ski.git Initial revision --- diff --git a/ski.xml b/ski.xml new file mode 100644 index 0000000..dc9fcc7 --- /dev/null +++ b/ski.xml @@ -0,0 +1,225 @@ + + + + + +SKI +6 +14 October 1990 + + +ski +an unusual skiing simulation game + + + + ski + + + + +DESCRIPTION + +Imagine you are skiing down an infinite slope, facing such +hazards as trees, ice, bare ground, and the Yeti, — a horrible +monster! Each turn moves you one screen row downhill. Unfortunately, +you have to put your jet-powered skis on backwards, so you can't see +ahead where you are going; only behind where you have been. + +However, you can turn to either side, jump or hop through the air, +teleport through hyperspace, launch nuclear ICBMs, and cast spells to call the +Fire Demon. And since the hazards occur in patches, you can skillfully +out-maneuver them. + +You ski until something bad happens to you. Your final score is based on +how far you have skiied, how many jumps you made, how many Snomen have melted +during your run, and how healthy you are when are finished. + +These characters represent the things that you see on the slope +behind you: + + + + I + +This is where you are. + + + + . + +This is normal snow — always completely safe to ski on. + + + + Y + +These are trees. If you try to ski through trees, you might hit +one and get hurt! + + + + ' ' + +A space represents bare ground with no snow on it. If you try +to ski on dirt, you could fall down.... + + + + # + +This is ice. When you are on ice, you can't turn, and you might slip and +fall down. + + + + A + +This is the Yeti! As soon as he crawls out of a Snobank, he +will lumber directly towards you at one space per turn, and if he gets +within one space of you, he will grab you and beat you up! However, +he has trouble moving through trees. Steer clear from the Yeti, and +he will melt after a while, since it is a sunny day. If you jump over +him, your jet-powered skis will help melt him. You can also melt him +with nuclear ICBMs, or call the Fire Demon who will cook him, but once +a Yeti melts, another one always shows up after a while. The Yeti +doesn't understand about the edges of the slope either, so you can +just cross them to get away from him! And since he is slower than +you, you can try to ski right past him before he can grab you! + + + + * + +This represents a nuclear ICBM that you launched. You launch +them from your backpack, and they zoom right at the Yeti. + + + + D + +This is the Fire Demon, who is always your friend unless you +call him a bad name and he gets mad at you. + + + + +These are your commands. You can type any one of these letters +when you have the "?" prompt on the end of the slope line, or just hit +a return to do nothing this turn. + + + + R + +Turn to the right. If you were going straight down, this will +make you go one space to the right every turn. If you type "R" again, +then you will go two spaces to the right every turn. If you type "L" +the next turn, you will again be going one space to the right every +turn. Remember that you can't turn when you are on ice, and if you go +off the edge of the slope you come back into the other edge. You +travel farther while you are going sideways, so you get a better score +if you slalom to the side a lot, but you can never go sideways more +than five spaces per turn. + + + + L + +Turn left. Exactly the same as turning right, but totally +opposite. + + + + J + +Jump. When jumping, you don't have the "?" on the right for each +line you jump over, so you can't enter a command for it. You can't +fall, hit trees, or get grabbed by the Yeti while jumping, but +you might land badly and get hurt. +Since the Yeti moves one space toward you each turn, you +have to be going at least two spaces per turn sideways to jump +over him without getting grabbed when you land, but your jet-powered +skis may melt the Yeti while you're jumping over him. + + + + H + +Hop. A hop is half a jump. + + + + T + +Teleport through hyperspace. This transports you to somewhere +else on the slope, but you might materialize way up in the air and +fall down. + + + + I + +Launch ICBM with nuclear warhead. If your backpack is working well, +an ICBM will be launched from it towards the Yeti, travelling at +three spaces per turn. Launching ICBMs is dangerous, but once one is +going, it can't hurt you. If it is launched and loses its negative-infrared +lock on the Yeti, it self-destructs. + + + + D + +Cast spell to summon the Fire Demon to this material plane. If +the alternate universes are in a synchronous phase, the Fire Demon +will appear somewhere on the slope, and move to attack the Yeti at +one space per turn, but if something goes wrong while casting this +spell, the Fire Demon might get mad and decide to go for you instead +of the Yeti! If there is no Yeti around, the Fire Demon will soon +get bored and go home. If you don't like where the Fire Demon showed +up, you can try to recast this spell, so that he will appear somewhere +else. + + + + ! + +Spawn an invisible monster called a UNIX shell. You may type to +the shell; it will do strange things with your input, opening a space +warp in the middle of the ski-slope to display them at you. The shell +monster is polite; when it is done, you will be deposited back on your +slope exactly where you were before. + + + + ? + +Display command help. + + + + + + +Good luck, and happy skiing! + + +AUTHOR +Mark Stevans, for Roy's Games, Inc. +Color support and the invisible shell monster by Eric S. Raymond +esr@thyrsus.com. + +This document describes Ski! Version +6.2 of December, 2003 (modified for color support by ESR). + + +DIAGNOSTICS +None. + + +BUGS +None known. + + +