


                                  Darklands

                     Getting Started in Medieval Germany

                              Brought to You By:

                              The Mappers Guild

                                ---<{TMG}>---


    Here we are again with help on the latest gaming software.  We knew this 
was to be a big one as it has been advertised for sometime and we knew Micro
Prose was going to put a lot of work into it.  Anyway, here goes, and enjoy!

Installation:  

    Just some notes first off.  This one takes some time to install
and will also not allow you to install C: to C:.  So the easy way is to copy 
everything into a temp directory and using the good old "subst a: c:\temp"
command.  It also seems that some people have had trouble with Soundblaster
capability and that the game freezes, but works fine with the Adlib selection.
The game does not feature any spectacular sound effects and the only digitized
speech is at the beginning of the intro saying: "Welcome to Darklands".  So
using Adlib as opposed to Soundblaster will not detract much or at all from
the game.

    Also, you may want to make a boot disk after installation.  The game has 
some hardcore problems with memory managers, etc..  But it is not manditory
to do so.  A little experience with DOS on your part of it can get around the 
problems, but if your as lazy as I am and never use your A: drive, go ahead 
and give the game 15 seconds or so to do things it's own way.

    One more thing, if you don't have or don't like using a mouse, don't 
even try.  Many of the mouse driven functions don't have a keyboard eqivalents
as well.

*****************************************************************************

General Info:

     This game does not feature a central objective other than to
make a rep for yourself throughout the region.  So a complete solve (As we
normally try and release) will likely come later after I am satisfied I have 
done all I can with the game.  Look for it within a couple of weeks. 

Getting started: 

     Normally in RPG's, pre-generated characters are well rounded but lack
high ability in their classes or attributes.  This does not appear to
be so in Darklands.  The pre-generated characters do cover the necessary skills
and have extremely high ability scores.  Although most of us like starting
from scratch, consider using the pre-generated characters.

    I've been told that the random generation is a little confusing, but after
playing around with it, it's not so tough.  There are some hints of
Megatraveller II and Twilight 2000 here.  

    Go to start a new world, and then create a character.  You first choice 
is to name him or let the game pick random German names for you.  The nickname
is what your character will go by and what you will have to know your people
as. After name and gender, go to begin childhood.  You now have to pick your
character's social class.  The only hard fast rule is that the lower your 
class, the more initial experience points you have.  There isn't much change in
physical attributes between classes but the skills definately are different.

    There are three groups of skills.  Weapons, scholarly, and general skills.
Heres a quick breakdown of classes and their initial skills:

       Nobility:  High scores in some weapons no skill in others, good and
                  high skills in all scholarly skills, nothing but riding
                  in general skills.

  Wealthy Urban:  Good scores in weapons, however low on some; high in some  
                  scholarly and fair in others.

    Town Trades:  Good in most weapons, zero in others, slightly less than
                  Urban in scholarly, high artifice but low in all other
                  general skills.

 Country crafts:  Good weapons, low scholarly, high and low in general skills.

Urban commoners:  High weapons but zeros in two, almost no scholarly, good 
                  stealth and streetwise.

          Rural:  Good weapons all around, almost no scholarly, high and low
                  generals.

     Otherwise, there isn't much difference between classes.  Next, you will 
distribute initial EP among physical attributes - the three "bodily" traits: 
Endurance, Strength, and Agility are most important.  The few randoms I did
had maximum levels in STR, over 30 in END and AGI, and an even mix of the
others.  The STR is important because armor weighs a lot in this game,
maybe too much.  The way to add scores is to put the mouse over the attribute
and use the plusses on the keyboard.  Now you will choose occupations (you may
get different ranks or choices after doing one job) that will give you skills
that you use when you start your adventures.  When you move the mouse icon over
different jobs, values next to skills will change, as well as certain
attributes will be raised or lowered.  The numbers next to the skills look
like this:

                            0:00     00 WEdg 

     Before the colon is the number the skill will be raised just by taking
the job.  The number after is how many EP you can raise the skill after
taking the job.  The number in front of the abbreviation is your current score.
Generally, give each character a very high score in one weapon, and some in 
the missile scores.  When I say very high, I mean 35-40+, some is 10 or 20.
Everybody needs some virtue and religous training.

     If you start with four characters, apparently you will need one with very
high alchemy, another with very high healing, one with artifice, and one with
very high virtue and religious training.  The one with alchemy might want to
start as an oblate, then as a soldier or something else to gain weapon skills.
The healer might want to start as a novice monk.  The one with artifice will
start as an apprentice craftsman.  That class is one of the few that raises in
rank.  The healer might also want to start as a novice monk.

NOTE:  In comparison with other games, the classtypes would all be fighters 
with secondary skills.  Because of this, there seems to be no weapon/armor
restrictions.  You use what you can afford and carry.


Magic and clerical abilities:

     In the game, there is no "magic" so to speak, but "alchemy," which can
duplicate magical effects in the effects of thrown potions.  The game will
ask you at certain times if you wish to use alchemy, and using the throw
command will use it in combat (Combat is upcoming).

     I have not been able to do too much with alchemy as I don't have the
formulae for different potions.

     Saints may be called upon to make miracles and increase statistics, or
just to help out in certain situations.  It will cost in the form of divine
favor and obviously if you call them too much they will leave you on your own.
Going to churches and doing services there will restore it.

     After creation, you may work or look for special services to perform in 
town.  At night you can fight in towns.  This is the best idea to start with.


Combat:

     Sort of a cross between Ultima VII and Wizards Crown.  In town, the
fastest way to start fighting is to walk back and forth from the Guild
Districts to the Secluded Grove.  You will see these on the menu's in town.
Outside the towns, the screen will stop moving and it will start combat.  When
the fight starts, you will see your group and the enemy (which might start off
screen).

     One of your characters will have a white box on him.  Hold down the right
mouse button and the menu headings will appear at the top of the combat screen.
Move the mouse icon to the ATTACK of the ORDER bar.  If you are over matched,
you can use one the options under ORDERS.  If not, move it to ATTACK. DO NOT
LIFT OFF THE BUTTON.  This is how the game recognizes commands.  Anyway, when
you move the mouse over the bar at the top of the screen, the complete menu
under the headings will appear.  To attack, go to attack and move the mouse
down the menu to Standard Attack and then release the button.  Now click on
an enemy with the left mouse button and a target should appear.  Now single
click the left button over another character and repeat the process.  When
all characters have been covered, go to the ORDERS menu and release the mouse
over RESUME.  This starts everything and will fight until one side is dead or
until you interrupt the fighting by changing the ORDERS command, or single
click on anyone.

     When the enemy is dead, you can loot his possessions. NOTE: Never take
clothing as it's worthless.  The next day you can sell off the loot.  The game
will show what scores have been raised by combat.  After that, it shows some
kind of victory picture, and your fame will raise if combat is in a town.

HINT:  If enemies are nowhere to be seen in combat, simply release the mouse 
button on RESUME without telling your characters to fight.  The enemy will
eventually come into view.  Now single click a character and start programming
the attack.

Anyway, that should get you started, and you will figure out where you are able
to travel and where you will get yourself killed.  This is not anywhere near
the complete documentation of the game, but is more than enough to play the
awhile without feeling like your missing something.  Expect another release 
after I have played this game for more than two days.

Following is a list of the skills in the order they appear in character
creation, and their abbreviations as used in the game:  

***********************************************************************
* Full Name..........Abbreviation  * Full Name..........Abbreviation  *
*********************************************************************** 

  Endurance          End             Edged Weapons      WEdg 
  Strength           Str             Impact Weapons     WImp
  Agility            Agl             Flail Weapons      WFll
  Perception         Per             Polearms           WPol
  Intellignece       Int             Thrown Weapons     WThr
  Charisma           Chr             Bow Types          WBoW
  Divine Favor       DF              Missile Devices    WMsD

                                     Alchemy            Alch
                                     Religious Training Relg
                                     Virtue             Virt
                                     Speak Common       SpkC
                                     Speak Latin        SpkL
                                     Read and Write     R&W

                                     Healing            Heal
                                     Artifice           Artf
                                     Stealth            Stlh
                                     Streetwise         StrW
                                     Riding             Ride
                                     Woodwise           WdWs

Enjoy Medieval Germany and until next time from TMG!

                          Maldarothe  

 