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L.A.P.D. Licenceware
presents
The Curse Of Azriel.
A Fantasy Adventure
by A.A. Covell
The story so far...
Over nine hundred years had passed
since Lord Azriel had last walked the
world. It was said that He came to
purge the world of evil and bring
scholarship and enlightenment to those
that sought it.
In those days the world had been a
terrible place ruled by barbarian
chieftains on land and ruthless pirates
at sea.
Lord Azriel brought order to the
chaos and created the roots of
civilisation by forming a world of
justice and equality and inspiring men
to strive for a better life through
commerce and trade.
Since His passing however, His
deeds were gradually forgotten. Pirates
were rife once more upon the oceans,
slavery became a profitable business
and thieves and cut throats infested
every city.
His good works were remembered
only to a few faithful followers who,
now outcast by society as religious
zealots, were forced to confine
themselves to a small island where they
could lead a monastic and simple life.
They raised an immense tower and
within its walls the servants lived,
worked, prayed and died.
Although the servants of Azriel
led a simple life, as an order they
were far from poor.
Throughout the tower the walls
were adorned with images of Azriel,
all of which were made of precious
metals and stones from all over the
world. The most impressive of all the
icons however was the immense statue
of Azriel which stood before the doors
of the great tower.
Standing over four hundred feet
high with eight strong muscular arms,
seven of which wielded massive swords,
weighing four hundred and fifty tons
and each with a hilt of solid gold,
Azriel stared out to sea from the isle
which bears His name.
Adgec Loev prayed silently within
the confines of his private chambers.
As life within the order decreed,
he spent almost all of his waking
hours meditating before one of the
towers numerous icons of Lord Azriel.
The room was bare save for a
wooden cot in the corner and a table
fashioned from iron oak from Beckania,
one of the worlds largest continents.
Dim light from a single torch
fitted in a silver sconce played
dancing shadows across the rough hewn
granite walls.
The waves caressing the nearby
chalk cliffs and the whisper of a light
south westerly wind were the only
sounds to come from the Stygian
blackness beyond the rooms only window.
His solace was disturbed when,
from somewhere outside in the
corridor, there came cries of pain and
anger.
Adgec raised his weary form from
the floor and moved towards the door.
Suddenly the door flew open and
Adgec was confronted by several men,
all of whom were armed with various
assortments of knives, daggers and
axes.
Overcoming his initial shock,
Adgec held out both hands before him,
palms up in the sign of Azrielian
greeting and friendship.
One of the men stepped forward,
raised a cutlass above his head, then
brought the hilt down, catching Adgec
with a blow to the temple.
When Adgec again opened his eyes,
daylight was streaming into his
chamber from the narrow window.
He could taste the metallic salty
taste of blood on his lips, and when
he raised a hand to his forehead he
brought it away quickly as the pain
flooded his entire body like a wave of
living fire.
For several minutes he lay still,
trying to gather his strength before
struggling to raise himself to his
feet. Fighting the nausea that seemed
to be attempting to engulf him, he
staggered through the door and into
the corridor. All around him were
scenes of death and destruction.
Out of the hundred or so monks
that inhabited Azriel's Tower less
than a dozen were left alive.
When the remaining brothers
gathered outside they were overcome
with shock and grief. The huge eight
armed statue had been toppled onto its
back and the seven swords of Azriel
were gone.
Adgec stood before his fallen
god and shouted, "Why!. Why O Lord
Azriel do you permit such sacrilege!."
The statue spoke. In a voice of
granite and sulphur it said, "Get me
to my feet and I shall send forth a
curse on the wings of a storm!"
Several monks fell to the floor in
obeisance. Some whispered, "He speaks!,
Lord Azriel is with us!"
The statue's voice grated, "I
exist through your faith. Now raise me
and I will send mankind a gift of
madness. I shall have retribution!"
Ropes were fastened to the statue
and when weighted with rocks were hung
over the cliffs. Slowly, the god
Azriel raised to stand erect once
more. The once serene face had changed
however and was replaced by a bestial
snarl. A ferocious wind issued forth
from the open mouth accompanied by
rolling thunder and arcs of searing
lightening!
Lord Azriel fixed His stony
countenance to Adgec's trembling form.
"Go forth now to a city by the
name of Aron's Bay. Here you will meet
with someone whom you shall recognise
by his actions alone. Tell him......"
You enter the story.
In this story you play the part of
a young man. Your father had been dead
these past five years and your mother
had remarried.
Her new husband however had no
pretence about being a father figure to
you and treated you in much the way
he would treat a dog.
You were forced to work for your
keep and allowed no money of your own.
Daily you were beaten and daily
you dreamed of escape.
Much of your rare free time was
spent at the harbour in Aron's Bay
watching the coming and goings of
trading vessels from far off places.
On one such day you were sat
beside the harbour wall. The sun was
low in the western sky and gulls
screeched and wheeled above the
harbour.
Drunken shanties permeated the air
from the inn further along the road
where sailors allowed shore leave spent
their share of captured prizes on wine
and women.
It was the first day of a new year
and you felt you would be relatively
safe from the press gangs which
roamed the sea front on most nights.
Indeed, most of the revellers
in the inn would be members of such
parties.
Although you dreamed of escaping
your drudgery, life as a pressed
crewman hardly appealed.
As the first star showed itself
low in the sky you decided you had
better head back home. It may be a new
year, but for you it would be work as
usual on the 'morrow, feeding cattle
and cleaning the barn.
Making your way along the harbour
front noticed an old man laid beside
some empty barrels. He wore a grey robe
made of hessian and open toe sandals.
His grey beard moved slightly in the
the gentle breeze, but otherwise he was
quite still.
Kneeling beside him you lifted his
head gently onto your thigh and he
opened his eyes.
"What ails thee old man?" you
asked.
The old man said nothing but
continued to look into your eyes as
though he could see through to your
very soul.
"Are you hungry?. I have some
bread and cheese, which though it is
little I will willingly share with
you," you said.
You helped the old man sit up and
broke your bread and cheese, giving him
more than half of your meagre meal.
While you both ate the old man
continued to look at you, still saying
nothing.
When you had both finished the old
man said, "You are the one I seek."
Thinking he was delirious you
helped him up to sit on a barrel and
began to make make your excuse to take
your leave.
"If you're feeling better then
I'll be on my way," you said.
The old man held out a gnarled
hand. In it was a leather bag.
"Take this," he said.
You took the bag and pulled the
drawstring and looked inside. The bag
contained a gold piece and some silver
coins.
Uncertainly you looked from the
bag to the old man.
"I am neither feeble in body nor
feeble in mind," he said.
"I am a servant of Azriel and I
have travelled far to find you."
You stood gaping like a fish fresh
from a trawler net.
"Sit with me while I explain,"
said the old man. "My name is Adgec and
I live in Azriel's Tower."
"About six months ago pirates
invaded our monastery and killed many
of my brothers. They stole many items
of gold and silver, and somehow they
managed to steal the swords of Azriel."
"These swords are so large they
could only have been carried singly in
huge salvage vessels."
"Lord Azriel sent the storm which
travels the oceans. The pirates were
caught in the storm and all of the
ships were sank, but where we know
not."
"Lord Azriel sent me to find you.
He said I would know you by your
actions, the actions of a good honest
man."
You gave Adgec his purse and
said,"I really have to go. I've got to
get home and..."
"I see you have trouble believing.
You think I'm quite mad!" Adgec
laughed.
"Look yonder. See the the merchant
with the red pennant?," he said.
You looked out over the harbour to
where he pointed.
"Yes, what of it?" you said.
"That's my ship," he smiled, "or
rather it's now your ship."
Again you looked at him
uncertainly.
"Come meet your officers," he said
and set off at a brisk pace along the
harbour front.
"What the hell," you thought, "I
may as well humour him," and followed
behind.
Your cynicism evaporated into
disbelief when Adgec mounted the
gangplank and the first mate reverently
helped him aboard.
"Jelac, meet your new captain,"
Adgec said and held out his hand toward
you.
The first mate bowed then gave you
his hand.
"Now wait a minute," you said,
"this is all too much too quick!"
"I don't understand what's afoot
but..."
"Please," said Adgec,"Jelac here
will help you all he can. You must find
the swords and return them to the
tower."
"This will aid you," he said and
he held out the leather purse.
"This will also be extremely
useful," he said giving you a small
silver button with a gem set in the
centre.
"This is The Eye of Azriel. When
invoked the Eye will return you to the
time to which it is set."
"Every time a captain leaves a
port he is offered the services of a
surgeon. The surgeons reside with
others of a scientific temperament,
including the alchemists."
In each port we have an alchemist
who sympathizes with our order. For a
price he or she will re-charge the Eye
with a new date."
"We made it look like a button so
that it may be sewn onto your coat and
avoid theft. We think of it as a kind
of insurance for your success."
You looked at the Eye resting in
the palm of your hand.
"Does it really work?" you asked.
Adgec smiled. "How many times have
you been somewhere or done something
and had the feeling that you had been
there before?"
You nodded numbly.
"That is the Eye at work. Only the
person who invokes the Eye knows the
true course of events. That way we
avoid any possible paradox," beamed
Adgec.
"But why me?", you asked. "Why do
you not find these swords yourself."
"Surely, Jelac here is more able
to find the swords than I." you said.
Adgec smiled softly, "I do the
bidding of Lord Azriel," he said. "I
never claimed to understand."
"For each sword you return you
will be paid handsomely. You are a good
man and that alone will protect you
from the madness".
"Then why a Merchant I?" you
asked, "why not a Salvage Vessel that I
may find the swords straight away?"
"As I said before," said Adgec,
"We know not where the swords lie. You
must travel throughout the world and
seek information within the inns of
each and every city."
"You will find more and learn more
if it is unknown that you work for the
brotherhood."
"Now, if you will excuse me, I'll
be on my way," he said, and with that
trotted nimbly down the gangplank.
You turned and looked at the first
mate.
"Orders captain?," said Jelac.
************************
This program is NOT P.D.
It is distributed under licence by
L.A.P.D.
Purveyors of quality PD for the Atari ST
80 Lee Lane,
Langley,
Heanor
Derbyshire
DE75 7HN
United Kingdom
For a complete listing of the vast
range of public domain, shareware and
licenceware titles available from our
library simply send a blank disk and a
s.s.a.e. to the above address and we'll
forward you a copy of our user-friendly
disk catalogue.
L.A.P.D. Licenceware
presents
The Curse Of Azriel.
A Fantasy Adventure
by A.A. Covell
( Requires at least 1mg of RAM )
Playing the game.
You start the game as a new
captain with a class 1 merchant ship.
Your ship is just outside of the
harbour at Arons Bay. It is equipped
with six guns,( the minimal amount ),
and almost a full crew. In the hold
there is one hundred tons of food, and
on your person you have one gold piece
and fifty silver pieces.
There are two other trading ports
on the same land mass as Arons Bay.
Jerum and Mantis are both situated on
the eastern seaboard. As the Merchant I
is primarily a coastal vessel it makes
good sense to trade between these three
cities before upgrading to a Merchant
II for trading across the high seas.
To move your vessel you can either
use the left mouse button by placing
the cursor in the general direction in
which you wish to proceed and clicking
once, or you can use the arrow keys,
(see Keyboard Commands).
You must be careful not to run
aground as this will cause severe
damage!
If you press the right mouse
button you are given a report on the
ships status, ie, position, cargo,
crew, guns etc.
Keyboard Commands.
The following keyboard commands
may be used while aboard ship.
Arrow keys.
UP Move ship North.
DOWN Move ship South.
RIGHT Move ship East.
LEFT Move ship West.
HELP Move ship North West.
UNDO Move ship North East.
INSERT Move ship South West.
Clr Home Move ship South East.
A Screen "appear" On/Off
D Docking sequence On/Off.
S Stop ship.
I Invoke Eye of Azriel.
The keyboard may also be used
instead of the mouse throughout the
game.
ALT+ARROW KEYS = Move mouse
pointer.
ALT+INSERT = Left mouse key.
ALT+Clr Home = Right mouse key.
If you direct the ship towards a
port the harbour master will ask you if
you would like to dock.
You are given the option of which
mouse button to use, left to berth or
right to refuse.
This method is used for most
decisions throughout the game.
When you dock in a port you enter
the harbour area. From here you can
recruit crewmen, visit the shipyard,
enter the city or leave the harbour to
board your ship.
Recruiting.
You should recruit regularly to
keep enough crewmen on board for
running the ship, operating guns and
releasing for captured prizes.
The crew are unpaid as they do not
really volunteer to work for you!,
however they do need food so you should
always keep a supply of food in the
hold. Obviously, the bigger the crew
the faster the food supply is used.
As recruiting takes place at
night, each time you recruit one day
passes. Ensure that there is food on
the ship for the crew left on board or
you may find that a good number have
jumped ship.
Gun Crew Training.
Certain cities do not allow press
gangs to recruit crew men. However,
while at these ports you can hire the
services of a training instructor to
make your gun crews more efficient.
The more efficient your gun crews
are the faster they can sponge out, re-
load and fire their guns.
The efficiency of your gun crews
can be crucial to the outcome of any
confrontation with pirates.
The Shipyard.
When you enter the shipyard you
have the option of repairing your ship
or buying a new ship. Costs vary from
city to city as ships and repair prices
are governed by the price of timber at
that particular port. You will notice
that once a ship has been used it loses
around three fifths of it's original
value.
When changing ships be sure to
remove all guns and empty the hold as
the shipwrights lay claim to every
thing on board once a ship is in their
possession
Leaving The Harbour.
When you leave the harbour to
go back aboard your ship you will be
asked if you would like to hire a
surgeon. With a surgeon on board any
injuries which occur through storms,
battles, running aground or plague etc,
will be given necessary treatment.
Injured crewmen will be back on duty
within a day or so.
Without a surgeon on board injured
crewmen usually die, leaving you with
less crew to run the ship.
After the surgeons offer an
alchemist will offer to re-charge the
Eye with the present date.
As this is an exspensive process
you should wait until you can afford a
Merchant II and be able to offer your
services to the Guild before wasting
money on keeping the Eye up to date for
coastal travel.
Invoking The Eye of Azriel.
You can invoke the Eye at any time
you are at sea by pressing "I".
This will return you to the date
to which the Eye is set.
The only times you cannot use the
Eye are when you are in a port, during
a storm or encountering pirates.
If you are shipwrecked you will be
able to invoke the Eye or return to the
start of the game.
In The City.
The Trading Post.
The trading post is the commercial
centre of each city. The prices are set
to each of the cities individual needs
and rise and decrease accordingly.
If timber is expensive in a port
then it stands to reason that ship
building and repairs will also be
expensive. Likewise, the price of
minerals in a port will affect the
price of armaments.
Arms may be bought and sold at any
port and may prove to be quite
profitable.
Use the left mouse button for
small amounts or the right mouse button
for large amounts.
The Mayors.
Visit the mayor before each voyage
and for a minimal sum he will give
information on the commodities to trade
for the best profits.
When you first start a game the
mayor will inform you of the prices in
the two nearby cities.
To ask for the location and prices
of other towns and cities you can enter
just the first three letters of the
place name.
The Armoury.
There are several kinds of guns
available for use on your ship, each
having it's own advantage or
disadvantage. For instance, a carronade
is excellent for fighting at close
quarters because of it's huge punch but
is useless at longer ranges. On the
other hand, a culverin has the
advantage of the longer range with the
disadvantage of less hit power. Each
ship is fitted with one of each kind of
weapon as standard, the rest of the
guns used depends entirely upon the
captains preference.
The prices of arms are governed by
the price of minerals in each
particular city, in the same way as the
price of timber affects the cost of
ship building and repairs.
Trading in arms can prove quite
profitable in a short time.
The Guild.
The guildmen are the upper class
statesmen of the cities. Working for
the guild can reap rich rewards.
The Inn.
As in any city the inn is always
the place to listen to local gossip.
Some things you learn may aid you, some
may be just rumour.
The inn is also a place where you
can try your luck on the roll of the
dice. As elsewhere try using both mouse
buttons.
The Gate House.
From here you can load or save
your position in the game.
You can save or load from any one
of five slots.
If you wish to use a seperate disk
for saving\loading then use a blank
formatted disk and follow the prompts.
The Gate Keeper charges one gold
piece for his services.
The Bank.
Monies due to you, from the guild
or your share of captured prizes etc,
are paid directly into your bank
account. The interest rate fluctuates
as do the prices of commodities.
Again use both mouse buttons.
Pirates.
Once away from the coast line you
are open to attack from pirates.
As the captain of the ship it is
your duty to keep enough crew available
for gun crew duty, each gun requires
five men. If you do not not have enough
crew for the guns you are carrying,
then you must choose which guns are to
be manned. Your decision will effect
the outcome of any encounter.
It is the captains responsibility
to ensure the safety of his ship, crew
and cargo. Once battle has commenced
the captain becomes a lonely figure who
can only watch and await the outcome.
Merchant ships are designed for
carrying large cargoes so most of the
room below decks is given over to the
hold. This leaves less space for
defensive weapons.
You may survive one encounter but
another could cost you your crew, cargo
and gold.
The Breath of Azriel.
The other major danger at sea is
the huge storm which blows from the
North West. Known as The Breath Of
Azriel this storm can cause untold
damage to a ship away from the
protective coast lines.
Trade well and wisely and you may
succeed.
This game was written entirely in
STOS Basic and is licenced to L.A.P.D.
for distribution.
If you copy the disks then please
leave all documentation intact.
L.A.P.D. will take whatever action
they consider necessary to protect the
rights of their licenceware authors from
unlicenced distribution of any
licenceware programs.
Copyright of this program and
accompanying documents belongs to:
A.A. Covell,
158 East Lane,
Stainforth,
Doncaster,
South Yorkshire.
DN7 5HQ
**********
This program is NOT P.D.
It is distributed under licence by
L.A.P.D.
Purveyors of quality PD for the Atari ST
80 Lee Lane,
Langley,
Heanor
Derbyshire
DE75 7HN
United Kingdom
For a complete listing of the vast
range of public domain, shareware and
licenceware titles available from our
library simply send a blank disk and a
s.s.a.e. to the above address and we'll
forward you a copy of our user-friendly
disk catalogue.
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