THE HISTORY OF THE WIZARD WAR
=============================

Within the covers of this leather-bound volume, its ancient pages coated by 
dust and time, is contained the History of the Wizard War. It was the great 
historian Molenubar the Chronicler who collected these many fragments of myth 
and legend, preserving them for posterity in one weighty tome. His was the 
labor of a lifetime. Writing in the ink of squids on pages of dried papyrus,
Molenubar worked day and night to complete the task. But the Old Gods were
jealous of the immortality that the completed work would grant him, and took
Molenubar before the story could be finished.

And so for the last 5,000 years the History of the Wizard War has remained
incomplete. This much, at least, of the history is known:

When the Old Gods created the world, they invested all living things with a 
powerful energy force - mana. In time, man learnt of the existence of mana
and those skilled enough to harness its incredible energy became powerful
wizards. It was an age of magic. Sorcerers amazed the populace with their
feats and toiled to unearth more of the precious mana. But healthy
competition soon turned to bitter rivalry, and the most powerful of these
sorcerers learned black arts so that they might overcome their adversaries.
Then, in a mighty cataclysm, the world was shattered by one wizard's
misguided hand...

However, of the apprentice wizard who was charged with restoring the world
to equilibrium Molenubar tells us nothing. All that is known of him is that
his mastery of the Magic Carpet was unsurpassed. It now falls to you to 
complete the chronicle, gather the power of the wizards to yourself and take
a Magic Carpet ride to glory.

RESTORING EQUILIBRIUM
=====================

Your quest is to restore equilibrium to fifty shattered worlds. You do this
by possessing mana, whether it be found floating free, contained within
some dreadful demonic beast, or in the possession of an evil rival sorcerer.
Once possessed, the mana is gathered by hot air balloon and transported to 
your home castle.

This quest is fraught with danger. The skies are alive with evil. Birds and 
beasts under the spell of the black arts assail you from all sides. Your
castle is a target for all those who would take your mana for their own
nefarious ends. Lose the power held there and it won't be long before you 
perish in the deep, blue waters that encompass each world. Fortunately,
there are spells concealed throughout your quest that will assist you. It
is vital that you gather these and use them well. Be wary, fly well and cast 
evil forever from the world.

PLAYING MAGIC CARPET
====================

When you leave the Sorcerer's Chamber, the next world appears before you.
Your quest is to restore each world to equilibrium, which can only be done
by possessing mana and collecting it in your home castle.

THE ALL-SEEING EYE
==================

This displays everything in the current world. You and your carpet are 
always at the center of the eye, where your position is marked by a cross.
Other objects are color-coded as follows so that you can recognize where 
danger lurks and where mana can be collected:

Free mana - gold dots
Your mana - white dots
Enemy mana - enemy color
Spells - red dots
Civilians - blue dots
Monsters - black dots
Your castle - white flag
Enemy castle - enemy colored flag

The broken line marks the route from your present position back to the 
castle.

Hot air balloons collect mana and are marked on the eye by balloon icons.
Teleports are windows to other parts of the current world; they are marked 
on the all-seeing eye as purple dots. Just fly through a teleport and you're
instantly transported to a new location.

THE STONES OF KNOWLEDGE
=======================

There are three Stones of Knowledge at the top of the Game Screen, engraved
with mystic runes which display your status. The white marks on the mana 
bars of the Castle and Sorcerer's stones show the point your power must
achieve to restore the world's equilibrium. All three stones flash red to
let you know when your mana is under threat.

The Sorcerer's Stone

This shows your status, with the red bar displaying your health and the 
white bar your mana.

The Castle Stone

The red health bar lets you know how near your castle is to destruction. On
the mana bar the grey area shows the maximum amount of mana the castle can
hold, and the white area is the proportion of this space currently occupied.

The Balloon Stone

Keep an eye on your balloon's health. If the balloon bursts, all the mana
it's carrying is lost; the castle then immediately dispatches another
balloon. The thin white line in the mana bar indicates how much precious
mana your balloon is currently carrying.

Note: The Castle and Balloon stones remain blank until you cast the Castle 
      spell.

The Spell Stones

These two smaller stones show the currently selected spells, and the mana 
bar indicates whether you have the power to cast the spell and how often.

CONTROLLING THE CARPET
======================

The skilled maneuvering of the eponymous carpet is absolutely essential to
your continued survival. You control the Magic Carpet with a combination
of keyboard presses and mouse movements.

The mouse controls the altitude of your magic mount and the carpet's
direction; move the mouse forward to sink to earth and back to soar 
skywards.

Speed and direction are controlled using the keyboard cursor keys. Press UP
to fly forward; repeat presses increase your speed. Press DOWN to reverse;
press DOWN repeatedly to get out of trouble even faster. Use the LEFT and
RIGHT keys to dodge incoming spells by moving the carpet quickly to either 
side.

When playing with a joystick, the keyboard cursor keys control speed and
sideways movement, while the joystick controls altitude and direction.

Note: Luckily, however hard you try and however bad you fly, it's impossible
      to crash into the ground.

COLLECTING MANA
===============

A fixed amount of mana exists in each world, hidden along with spells and used 
by your enemies to possess people, animals and demonic creatures. Destroying
aggressors frees the mana, which is then yours to claim. Mana cannot be 
destroyed, no matter how hard you try.

Mana exists in three states: yours (white), enemy (enemy color) and neutral
(gold).

To change the state of mana, you must cast a possession spell. Mana boosts
your power as soon as you've possessed it. However, it only counts toward
the total mana needed to complete the level once returned to your castle.

CIVILIANS
=========

When you possess a house or tent, the occupants' mana come under your control
(although you can't move it back to your castle). The people who live in
towns come in three varieties: townies, traders and builders. Townies stay
put, builders construct new dwellings for the expanding population, while 
traders wander from town to town pedaling their wares {hehe... kinda sounds
like us!}. Once a town reaches a certain size, it creates its own army of 
archers to protect it, and if the town is in your possession they will aid
your cause.

However, all this potential for good can be ruined if you fire on defenseless
townsfolk. The occupants then attack you, costing you mana rather than 
boosting your power. It might be tempting to fire off a few spells just to
test the water, but resist the urge - it'll cost you.

CASTING A SPELL
===============

Having invested most of your power bringing the Magic Carpet to life, you
begin the game without a single spell to your name. Fortunately, you can 
pick up spells along the way. A spell can usually be found within a stone 
circle, but isn't revealed until you've flown past and broken the 
invisibility lock which keeps it hidden.

Note: A horde of mana is often hidden along with a spell, or it can be
      protected by some fiendish demon - so watch your back.

Spells are held within urns and only appear in the magic eye once the 
invisibility lock has been broken. To collect a spell, simply fly into it;
the new spell is added to your inventory. Spells held in blue urns are
special. They can only be used on the current level and don't carry over
into the next world. Also, you can cast these spells depending upon the 
amount of mana in your possession, rather than the amount in your castle.

Spells are cast using the LEFT and RIGHT mouse buttons. You can assign any
spell from your inventory to either button, and you can also assign spells
to the keyboard number keys as a short-cut.

WASTED WIZARDS
==============

If you're killed without restoring the world to equilibrium, you can replay
the world (and hopefully do a little better than the first time). Press
SPACEBAR for the Sorcerer's Chamber and LEFT-CLICK the Continue Game icon.
However, the mana stored in your castle regenerates your personal energy
when you're near death, so if you get out of harms way you're able to 
continue the level. If you kill a rival wizard, whether you're in a network
game or not, you can cast a possession spell at the wizard's skeletal
remains and claim all his mana as your own.

COMPLETING THE LEVEL
====================

When you've completed your task and restored a world's equilibrium, the on-
screen message 'world restored' appears. Press SPACEBAR to leave the current
world for the Completion screen, or continue collecting mana and spells
you may have missed. When you begin the next world, all the spells you've 
collected so far are still at your disposal.

The Completion screen tells you the world name and number, and lets you rate
your performance with % scores in the following categories: creatures killed,
accuracy, spells found, mana and overall performance.

THE SPELLS SCREEN
=================

This is where you can take a look at the whole of a particular world, and
assign spells to the mouse buttons and keyboard.

To access the Spells Screen, either press BOTH mouse buttons simultaneously
or press ENTER.

WORLD MAP
=========

Rather than the small area revealed in the All-Seeing Eye, this map shows
the entire world currently being played. You are still displayed as a cross
in the center of the map and the color-coding system is the same as the 
All-Seeing Eye.

THE NETWORK MATRIX
==================

In Network games, {as well as NOT... it helps to see how the other wizards
are doing!!} move the pointer off the bottom of the Spells Screen to see the 
Network Matrix. This contains the names of all the networked players in the
current world and a figure showing the number of times each player has 
killed his/her opponent(s). Every player also has a mana power rating. If 
one player's mana rating is way above your own, it's a safe bet you'll come
off worst in any close encounters - so steer your carpet clear!

THE SPELLS MENU
===============

A place in the Spells Menu is reserved for each of the 24 spells to be found
in Magic Carpet. A spell automatically homes in on the nearest aggressive
target when cast (as long as the target is near the center of the screen), 
so the real trick is not aiming the spell but selecting the right one for 
the occasion. The 24 spells are {from left-to-right, top-to-bottom}:

 1. Fireball - Launch a ball of destructive fire at your enemies.

 2. Possess - Take control of any building or mana.

 3. Accelerate (forward) - Propel yourself out of trouble at breakneck
                           speed. Hold down the mouse button to achieve
                           maximum speed. To cancel the spell, press the
                           DOWN cursor key.

 4. Create Castle - Use this spell to build a fortress to protect your mana.
                    When cast, a hot air balloon is launched that gathers
                    your mana. Additional castle spells can be cast on the
                    same site, expanding the castle and launching more 
                    balloons.

                    Note: You can have only one castle site per world, unless
                          the first is destroyed. If you've positioned your
                          castle where it's impossible to expand (eg. next
                          to a sheer rock face), you can destroy the castle 
                          yourself by pressing SHIFT-L and cast another
                          castle spell elsewhere.

 5. Heal - If you have enough mana available, this returns your health bar
           to maximum whenever it's depleted by an enemy attack.

 6. Rebound - Deflects incoming fire spells back to where they came from, so
              that no harm is done to you and your opponent risks injury.

 7. Shield - Absorbs three-quarters of the energy of the spells launched by
             your nemesis.

 8. Invisible - Cloaks you in a mask of invisibility for a time. However, as
                soon as you cast a spell you can be spotted by both players
                and monsters.

 9. Earthquake - Cast this spell to confound land-based monsters by opening
                 a huge crevice under their feet. But don't waste your time
                 trying to cast this spell in water.

10. Crater - Not as powerful as the Earthquake spell, this adds a large 
             crater to the landscape.

11. Meteor - Summon almighty rocks and hurl them at any hapless foe who 
             crosses your path.

12. Volcano - Creates a gigantic eruption of red hot lava from the bowels of 
              the earth, destroying everything in the vicinity. An extra
              advantage of this spell are the periodic eruptions which 
              inflict further damage.

13. Lightning Bolt - This spell's electric, shooting bolts of electricity
                     from your fingertips. Hold down the mouse for a 
                     continuous stream of lightning that locks onto a target
                     and makes shish kebab out of him.

14. Lightning Storm - Unleash a storm of white hot electricity, which shoots    
                      off in all directions and destroys everything within
                      its radius.

15. Undead Army - Raise an army of red-cloaked skeletons to attack rival
                  wizards, their castles and balloons.

16. Mana Magnet - Gathers all the mana in the immediate vicinity into one
                  large ball, making it all the easier for your balloon to
                  collect.

17. Steal Mana - Rob evil sorcerer's of their hard-earned mana using this 
                 spell.

18. Beyond Sight - Gives the All-Seeing Eye greater power than before,
                   revealing the location of all the other players.

19. Duel to the Death - Locks two players together for some immortal combat.
                        When you've a foe in your sights cast this spell and
                        they can only escape by using the Accelerate spell.

20. Teleport - This spell instantly transports you to your castle, for the 
               purpose of defense or to recharge with mana power. Cast it 
               again to return to your original location.

21. Wall of Fire - Do I need to spell this one out? Create an impenetrable
                   wall of flame to confound your enemies.

22. Accelerate (backward) - Disappear to the rear at a tremendous rate.

23. Global Death - Sends out a shockwave that proves fatal to anything caught
                   within its influence.

24. Rapid Fireball - Makes the fireball spell look like a cheap card trick.
                     Unleash multiple balls of flame in rapid succession to
                     devastating effect.

SPELL MANA
==========

When an occupied spell box is highlighted, a mana bar is revealed. A small 
white dot is added to the bar for every time the spell can be cast; the whole
bar must be filled in grey before a dot is added. Some of the higher spells
remain inactive in the spells menu until you have built up a large amount
of mana in your castle.

ASSIGNING SPELLS
================

To assign a mouse button, simply highlight the spell and press either the 
LEFT or RIGHT mouse button.

Occupied spell boxes contain a spell icon and a number; to assign a different
number (up to 10), highlight the spell with the pointer and simply press the
preferred keyboard number, and then pressing either the LEFT or RIGHT mouse
button.

APPENDIX I: The Magic Carpet Bestiary
=====================================

Molenubar tells us that every one of Magic Carpet's shattered realms contains
monstrous creatures who are driven by an insatiable desire for mana. These 
unthinking beasts are without remorse and know no reason; your only hope is
their destruction.

The Magic Carpet bestiary includes:

Apes - Twice the size of Trolls but similar in behavior and likewise armed 
       with boulders, which they sling at you and your castle like confetti.

Bees - Swarm together and attack both you and your castle. Bees are armed 
       with stingers, so must get close to inflict damage. They are more
       harmful than vultures and harder to kill.

Crabs - When a Crab egg hatches, the small crustacean which emerges is 
        already armed with fireball spells. But Crabs are voracious feeders,
        and as they consume mana they grow larger and more powerful. A
        medium-sized Crab will attack you with lightning bolts, and an adult 
        hurls meteors. When full-grown, Crabs can lay eggs, propagating 
        another generation of this pincer-clawed peril.

Dragons - An airborne version of the Worm, similarly armed with fireballs but
          far quicker and more agile, and therefore that much more difficult
          to kill.

Emu Riders - These flightless birds carry archers at incredible speeds across
             the landscape, raining volley after volley of arrows down upon
             you before disappearing into the distance.

Genie - Less of a threat, more a monumental pain in the pants, genies cast
        fireballs and steal your mana. While unlikely to destroy you, they
        have the annoying habit of teleporting out of combat situations only
        to turn up later with their powers restored.

Griffin - The Griffin is unique in two ways: it can penetrate the cloak of 
          your invisibility spell, and only attacks if you're rash enough to
          fire first. Armed with lightning bolts, the Griffin becomes a 
          formidable foe when roused.

Kraken - When the Kraken wakes, this sea-bound Behemoth emerges from the icy
         depths firing bolts of lightning. The Kraken is also armed with the
         Duel spell, and once caught in its vice-like grip you'll be lucky
         to escape with your turban intact.

Skeletons - Unless stopped, this skeletal scourge launch volley after volley
            of arrows at you and your castle. They hate the human archers
            who guard towns and villages, killing them to swell the ranks of
            this undead army.

Trolls - Slow and stupid but very strong, Trolls are armed with boulders.
         They have the enviable ability to regenerate after an injury, so a 
         little bit of overkill might be required to make certain a troll 
         stays dead.

Vultures - These flockers will attack you and your castle. They use their 
           claws to attack, so need to get very close to do any damage.

Worms - Earthbound, but armed with fireballs that are capable of downing
        you and your carpet in double-quick time.

Wyvern - This flying nightmare makes a Dragon resemble a spring lamb. The
         Wyvern is armed with rapid fireballs and is ammune to the Rebound
         spell. It attacks castles, eats mana and even when beaten half to 
         death can regenerate its power in a very short time.

APPENDIX II: A Word on each World
=================================

In his History of the Wizard War, Molenubar hints at the nature of the 
challenge contained in each world. Forewarned is for forearmed, so here for
your benefit are a few facts that might help keep you and your carpet in one
piece.

 1. Al Jahan - The peaceful island dwellers of Al Jahan are in dire need of
               your aid.

 2. Khallabad - Traders from Khallabad speak of coiling horrors bringing down
                death from the skies. 
              
 3. Sulghir - Ancient warriors from the realm of Sulghir have risen from 
              their graves.

 4. Akrir - The evil sorcerer Vodor has unleashed chaos in the land of Akrir.

 5. Cessecca - Settlers on the island of Cessecca are plagued by swarms of
               giant bees.

 6. Qazziel - The Seer of Qazziel has foreseen the destruction of his city by
              undead hordes and other terrors.  
             
 7. Ar Ulnan - The port of Ar Ulnan is under siege by air and sea.

 8. Gillah - Evil trollish tribes have returned to Gillah for the first time
             in a thousand years.

 9. Kutoor - The forest of Kutoor is alive with evil once more, driving the
             people into catacombs below the citadel.

10. Rannaxior - Griffins have invaded the sacred mana grounds of Rannaxior.

11. Zanzandria - Would-be sorcerers have been lured to Zanzandria by rumors
                 of great magic there.

12. Mehkhel - Magical mirrors provide a route through Mehkhel - land of 
              exile. Seek and you shall find.

13. Dullighir - The maze of Dullighir guards its secrets well.

14. Nazzajahn - Follow the endless path of the stones of Nazzajahn to unleash
                great power.

15. Al Saumam - Beware, the shores of Al Saumam harbor scuttling nightmarish
                creatures.

16. Aflahkstahn - The key lies in unlocking the four ways of the fortress.

17. Jan Tabar - A great wyvern has been sighted near the mountains of Jan
                Tabar.

18. Kireemir - The realm of Kireemir is turning itself inside out.

19. Ar Vilim - Devilish traps spring from every corner of this realm.

20. Jondd Warr - The island of Jondd Warr is infested with dragons... and 
                 other things.

21. Khaghabal - Mana guarded in the watchtowers of Khaghabad has attracted
                many scuttlers to the realm.

22. Ul Ramin - Banish evil from Ul Ramin and beware your adversaries for 
               their skills are increasing.

23. Naqual - The souls of the fallen heroes of Naqual have been possessed by
             necromancy.

24. Quaddimar - Of those who have ventured beyond the borders of Quaddimar,
                few have returned.

25. Ottommia - Zimbaliza, greatest of the original warlocks fell here
               centuries ago and his magic still remains, so they say.

26. Xikhypt - Restore order to this land and you will be well prepared for
              the realms beyond.

BE WARNED: BEYOND THIS POINT YOUR JOURNEY WILL TAKE YOU TO REALMS GUARDED BY
           MANA VAMPIRES WHO WILL STEAL MANY OF YOUR SPELLS.

27. Shebbahn - Seek the sacred forest of Shebbahn to recover spells stolen
               from you - but beware the consequences.

28. Hazzanjahn - The isles of Hazzanjahn are linked by magical mirrors but
                 not all of them take you where you want.

29. Zakhazaran - Save the remaining citizens from otherwise certain doom.

30. Banahstur - Your adversaries have never conquered this realm. Can you?

31. Idirya - Do not anger the griffin of the Idiryan Sea until you have the
             spell to defeat them.

32. Thammon - The impassable walls of Thammon guard great power and great
              danger.

33. Jahrrid - It is said that to survive the maze of Jahrrid a wizard must 
              have eyes in the back of his head.

34. Khatoud - Plagues of giant bees have rendered this once beautiful land
              barren.

35. Shai Yulim - The city of Shai Yulim is under attack but to save it you
                 must first defeat the genie at the gate.

36. Moorrok - Your enemies await you in the hills of Moorrok.

37. Quahahn - All who practice the magic arts must be tested in the ancient
              training grounds of Quahahn.

38. Yoggohr - The pools of Yoggohr are an enigma only the worthy will 
              unravel.

39. Ar Zaljan - Merchants returning from Ar Zaljan say that all is lost but
                one must never abandon hope.

40. Arrimir - No one has ever found the exit to Arrimir's maze. Yet enter it
              you must.

41. Ooramesa - Many turn back at the sight of the walls of Ooramesa but you 
               persevere.

42. Ghabbaladan - Great evil lurks in and around Lake Ghabbaladan.

43. Tekumir - To restore order to this realm, one must first find an order
              to restore.

44. Zantor - Zantor has already been utterly desatroyed but the creatures
             which remain must be banished forever.

45. Dubbahn - Dubbahn, isle of exile, is under attack and the capricious imps
              guarding it will steal most of your powers.

46. Ephieria - Ephieria must not fall to the forces of evil - you are their
               only hope.

47. Inixxia - Inixxia was once a fertile land. Now death is the only harvest.

48. Meebir - See Meebir and die.

49. Shal Kazan - Be warned, several sorcerers already claim this territory as
                 theirs.

50. Volcania - Steer a careful course, for in this place the land itself
               spews death into the skies.





THAT'S ALL FOLKS! 

Special thanks go out to Bullfrog for this great piece of programming (buy
the original, I did, help support these great efforts!). Also, thanks and
greets go out to GENESIS... keep kickin' ass in '95!


Brought to you by The Egg - member of EggSoft. Enjoy!



