
Dragon Adventure

This file is intended for teachers and parents wanting to find out 
more details of the game.

It also contains information explaining the game locations and puzzles 
which may spoil the game if you are intending to try playing it through. 
The information is provided so that a teacher or parent can help a child 
who is stuck in the game. The game can be played through in a minimum 
of about 100 moves (though about 400 is more usual), and generally takes 
a group 2-3 hours or so to finish.

Dragon Adventure is a text-based adventure with pictures and a few 
optional sound effects for players aged 9 and above. It should be 
suitable both for children and perhaps foreign English students, as well 
as beginners at these types of text adventure games. 
Its aim is to stimulate memory, language work and discussion within 
small groups, and to help foster a logical approach to problem solving.
Within the UK National Curriculum for English, the program helps to 
develop oracy (both the speaking and listening), spelling and reading 
comprehension skills.

The adventure is set in a make-believe world, where the players are 
set the challenge of trying to get rid of the dragon. This can be done 
in either of two ways: by killing it with the enchanted sword, or by 
releasing the dragon from the bewitchment that has been put on it 
(by playing the magic pipe). The players must then discover the dragon's 
hidden treasure hoard to complete the game.

Players must find either the sword or the flute, and discover the way
to safely enter the dragon's tunnels and neutralise the dragon. To do this
they must solve a series of simple problems involving gathering and using
the objects that can be found in the various game locations. There are 
clues to this scattered throughout the game. 
You can also type HELP to get specific clues at different points in the 
game.

The program works by describing locations on the screen, together with 
any objects that can be seen. Commands are typed in the form of two 
words, eg. GET SWORD or RING BELL. Movements can be made by typing the 
direction (GO NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, WEST, UP, DOWN), and most can be 
abbreviated to a single letter. Commands such as ENTER COTTAGE can also 
be used in some places.

With children, ideally the game should be played by small groups of 
2 to 4 people. 
The current position can be saved and restored at a later date. It is 
advisable to save the position at regular intervals so that if anything 
disastrous happens in the adventure, the game does not have to be 
restarted from the beginning. There is also an UNDO feature which will 
attempt to undo the last move, or will attempt to undo a trapped 
situation.
The command RESCUE is provided as a last resort to attempt to recover 
otherwise irretrievably lost items (that may have been eaten, broken 
or given away), and will attempt to recover from unwinnable game 
situations (such as being trapped).
There is also the command RUN which takes you away from immediate danger, 
but you will drop whatever you happen to be carrying.

Older children should be encouraged to make up their own map as they 
go along, though it may be found that a sketch-map of the main locations 
is best provided. 
The picture version of the game displays a map of the places visited 
so far, by entering the command MAP.

Game Vocabulary:
Disc commands:
	SAVE		saves current game position
	RESTORE or LOAD	load and run a previously saved game position

Other commands:
	UNDO		will attempt to undo the last move made
	MAP		shows a map of places visited so far
	INVENTORY or I	to list what you are carrying
	EXAMINE or X	to examine something
	SCORE		to see the score and move count
	LOOK or L	to see the description of the location again

To see in the dark of the tunnels and to move around safely the candle 
must be found and lit. The candle can be extinguished, but it will not 
run out and there is no limit to the number of moves that can be made 
once it is lit.
Up to 6 items can be carried at once.

The program counts the number of moves taken and keeps a score based on 
the number of puzzles solved.

Typing the commands SOUND OFF and SOUND ON will switch the sound off 
and on (the sound is on by default).

Actions recognised:

BLOW		FILL		LIGHT		RUN
BUILD		FLY		MAKE		SAY
BUY		FIND		OPEN		SPEND
CLOSE		GET		PLAY		STRIKE
DRINK		GIVE		POUR		TAKE
DROP		GO		QUIT		TIP
EAT		HELP		READ		UNLOCK
EMPTY		INVENTORY	RIDE		USE
END		JUMP		RING
EXAMINE		KILL		RUB


Game objects:

BANANAS		CANDLE		KEY		PARACHUTE
BELL		CHAIR		LAMP		SCREWDRIVER
BICYCLE		CLUB		MAN		SHEET
BATH		COIN		MATCHES		SIGNPOST
BOOT		DRAGON		MONKEY		STUMP
BOTTLE		HORN		MUG		SWORD
BOX		HANG-GLIDER	PAPER		TROLL


Object names can be abbreviated to just the first three letters.

Scoring:	1	for buying the box
		1	for finding the screwdriver
		2	for finding the candle
		1	for finding the matches
		1	for for opening the castle door
		1	for building the hand-glider in the right place
		2	for getting the sword/booklet
		1	for escaping from the tower
		2	for killing the Troll to get the horn
		5	for talking to the Troll to get the horn
		2	for killing the dragon
		5	for charming the dragon instead of killing him
		5	for finding the treasure

	                = 25 points maximum total

                (less 1 point for each UNDO)

Help:
By entering the command HELP some special help hints are available at 
certain points in the game:

With the magic lamp in the cottage:
"Remember Alladin..."

In the dark tunnels without the lit candle:
"You really need some light..."

At the castle door:
"You need a key..."

At the bird bath:
"Perhaps you should be kind to the birds..."

In the closed cottage (if you haven't found the key yet):
"Have you examined everything closely..."
otherwise:
"You'll need some magic to get out of here! - try RESCUE"

At the top of the castle tower when the monkey has the sword:
"You need to get him to drop the sword somehow..."

To get past the little man in the swamp:
"Perhaps if you bought what he was selling..."

At the top of the tower:
"You need to get from the tower to the ground somehow..."

Otherwise the standard response is:
"Look round and examine things."

A note on game versions:
Dragon Adventure was originally written on the Acorn BBC/RiscOS
series of computers.
It has recently been rewritten in Inform, a language devised 
specifically for the creation of text adventure games, and compiled 
as both text-only (z5) and text/picture/sound (Glulx Blorb) game files. 
Such files can be played using one of the freely available game 
interpreter programs. The advantage of this is that the game can be 
played on a wide variety of different machines including PCs, Macs, 
Linux and handhelds for which interpreters have so far been written. 
The sound/picture version is only available on the PC, Mac and Linux 
computers so far.

Interpreters can be downloaded for free from Interactive Fiction 
website at www.ifarchive.org, which is the Alexandrian Library of 
all things to do with adventure games. The site includes a huge 
range of other free adventure games to download of varying quality, 
complexity and suitability.

History:
Dragon Adventure started life on the BBC micro around 1982. 
The basic framework of game locations and puzzles (including the 
violence towards dragons and trolls) was produced by a group of 
Year 5 children on a wet Friday afternoon (thanks to Tracey, Tracy, 
Julia, Joanne and the others). I put this into a finished game so 
the children could try out their own work. I also produced a 
Commodore PET version (the other Y5 class had the loan of one at 
the time - my class had the school's only BBC).

The game was eventually distributed free to schools in the London 
Borough of Hillingdon, and was available from the MUSE 
(Microcomputer Users in Secondary Education) software library 
until its closure a few years later.

It was converted to run on the Acorn Archimedes around 1990, and 
was updated in the late 90s for the more modern RiscPC with the 
addition of sound samples and pictures of the items carried.

It has been available in RiscOS format as a free internet download 
since 1999. Over the years it has been occasionally used in various 
classes I have taught. Various minor changes have been made in response 
to the sorts of things children tend to type in and try to do in the 
game. 

In 2003 I taught for a while at Shellingford Primary and used a 
similar game, Goblin Adventure, with the children using the 
VirtualAcorn emulator on a PC laptop. I put the RiscOS versions of 
several games on the school website, and rewrote a slightly extended 
version of Dragon Adventure in z5 and Glulx (with pictures). These 
should now work directly on Windows and (in theory) on the Mac, so 
the children can use it at home.

The program is copyright but may be freely copied and distributed,
as long as no charge is made.

William Stott, January 2004 (wstott@bigfoot.com)


Solution:

Go S, E, D, take the coin, examine the barrels and take the mug. 
Go U, W, W and give the coin to buy the box. Take the box (the 
hang-glider kit), examine it, open it and read the instruction 
leaflet (you need a screwdriver). Go W, read the sign, go S, read 
the sign, go W, N to the forge and take the magic lamp. Go S, E, 
N, E, S, S, E into the cottage. Examine the table and take the 
key and bananas then rub the lamp to be transported back somewhere 
outside (the lamp disappears). Go S, W, N, W, S, S into the 
lighthouse, examine then tip the boot and take the screwdriver. 
Go N, N, N, N, N and get the silver bell, unlock the castle 
door, drop the key and go N, U to the top of the tower. Give 
the bananas to the monkey, build the hang-glider, drop the broken 
screwdriver and take the sword and the instruction booklet. 
Take the hang-glider and jump to float down to the wasteland. 
Go E and ring the bell to summon the wandering Troll, who will 
appear somewhere in the outside locations. Once you find him, 
you can either kill him with the sword (for fewer points), or say 
HELLO to make friends with him. Greet him then give him the bell 
and take the hunting horn. Next, go to the lake and examine the 
reeds and get the flute. Fill the mug with water and go S, E and 
fill the bird bath. Take the candle dropped by the bird and go W, 
examine the tree stump and light the candle with the matches. 
The number of moves that can be made with the lit candle is 
unlimited. Read the instruction booklet to learn how to play the 
flute then drop the booklet (no longer needed) and go W, N, N, E 
into the cave. Go S, S and play the flute to break the dragon's 
spell. It is also possible to kill the dragon with the sword, 
though you earn fewer points for doing so. Examine the bones and 
take the bottle, examine it then break it and read the clue on 
the paper. Go N, N, E, U to the inn then in turn examine the 
chair, the carvings than the goblin to find the next clue. Go D, 
W, S, S back to the dragon's lair and blow the horn. Go E to the 
treasure. Take the gold or the jewels to complete the game. Trying 
to ride the magic bicycle will deliver you to the dragon's lair, 
and can be used as a shortcut. There is another shortcut inside 
the lighthouse.
(Total about 100 moves)

The only time you will die is if:
you try to use the parachute to get down from the tower
you try to move in the dark
you try to kill the Troll or dragon without having the sword
you attack or try to kill the little man in the swamp
you spend too long with the suspicious Troll without speaking to him
you wake the dragon by going into its lair without quickly killing it 
or playing the flute


Game Locations:
(numbers refer to the map)

In some rocky mountains (14)
This is your starting-point in the adventure. You need to go south 
to get to the inn.

Outside an inn (15)

Inside the deserted inn (21)
There is also a clue here to the 
way to find the dragon's treasure hoard. If you examine the chair, 
you will find some carvings. If you then examine the carvings, then 
examine the goblin, you see a goblin blowing a horn next to the dragon.

In a cellar under the inn (22)
Here there is an old coin that you need to give the little man in 
the swamp to buy the box with the hang-glider kit. If you examine 
the barrels you will find the pewter mug that you need to carry water 
for the bird-bath. There is also a short-cut here to the dragon's 
tunnels, but you need the lit candle to move safely. If you step 
into the dark, you can recover if you immediately return back the 
way you have come, otherwise you become lost in the tunnels and you
either fall in the dark or get killed by the dragon.

In a swamp (10)
There is a little man in the swamp who won't let you go past. 
You need to give him the coin from the cellar under the inn to buy 
the cardboard box containing the hang-glider kit. You need this to 
get down from the castle tower after you have the sword. Once you 
have bought the box you can get past the swamp. If you try to kill 
the man, he will just kill you instead. If you open the box and 
read the instruction sheet, it says 'Acme Hang-glider Kit - all you 
need is a screwdriver'. If you build the hang-glider anywhere else but 
the top of the tower, it becomes too awkward to carry. The screwdriver 
breaks as you tighten the last screw, so you can't dismantle it.

Outside a cave (11)
This leads to the cave system where the dragon's lair can be found. 
You need the lit candle to go into the caves safely. If you go in 
without light, you can recover if you immediately return back the 
way you have come, though if you try to go in any other direction 
you will get lost in the caves and killed by the dragon, or else 
fall in the dark.

Beside a thatched cottage (12)

Inside the thatched cottage (24)
This is the Troll's cottage, which he has modified to trap any 
burglars and thieves. There is no way out of here without 
the magic lamp. If you examine the table, you will find a bunch of 
bananas that are needed for the monkey in the castle tower, and 
the key to the castle door. Rubbing the magic lamp will take you 
somewhere outside the cottage with whatever you are carrying, and 
the lamp will vanish. If you get stuck in the cottage without 
the lamp, UNDO will return you back outside but replace the bananas 
and key back in the cottage.

On a path in the forest (13)
There is an empty bird bath here. You need to fill the pewter mug with 
water from the lake and fill the bird bath. A bird comes down and drops 
a candle that you can use to move in the dark of the tunnels.

On a forest path by a tree stump (9)
If you examine the tree stump, you will find the matches you need to 
light the candle.

By a lake (8)
You need to collect water here in the old pewter mug from the inn cellar. 
The water is needed to fill the bird-bath. Amongst the reeds here you 
will find a snake-charming flute, which you need to break the spell on 
the dragon. The flute cannot be played properly without first reading 
the instruction booklet, found at the top of the tower. This tells you 
how to use the flute to 'charm serpents and other dangerous reptiles, 
and how to break enchantments'.

At the south end of a road (7)
There is a signpost you can read to find the way to the castle.

At the north end of a road (6)
There is a signpost you can read to find the way to the castle.

In some wasteland near a castle (3)
There is a magic delivery bicycle here. If you try to ride it, it 
takes you to the dragon's lair, delivering you to the dragon, whizzing 
through the various locations on the way.

By a pebbled beach (4)
There is a parachute here. This has no use in the game, but if you 
try to use it to get down from the castle tower, it will not open 
in time and you will be killed.

By a forbidding castle (1)
To get into the castle you need the key from the little cottage. 
There is a silver bell here. You need to ring this to summon the 
Troll. He then appears somewhere in the outdoor locations and 
wanders at random outdors. If you meet him he will soon attack 
you and try to kill you, unless you either talk to him or kill him 
first with the sword. If you try to move away, he will follow 
wherever you go. You can run away to a location 2 places removed 
from where you are by typing RUN, but you drop everything 
you are carrying as you go. The Troll will then continue to roam 
around, but he will not follow you unless you meet him again. 
If you say HELLO to him you will find that he is looking for his 
silver bell. He will stay in the location until you give it to 
him, then he will lend you his hunting horn in exchange. This 
is needed to open the secret door to the Dragon's treasure hoard. 
It is also possible to get the horn by killing the Troll with the 
sword, though this gains fewer points.

In the old castle forge (2)
There is a magic lamp here, with some writing on it, 'Merlin's 
Lamp Company - Alladin model'. If you rub the lamp, you will be 
transported somewhere to an outside location, and the lamp will 
vanish. You need the lamp to get out of the Troll's cottage. 
If you try to light the lamp with the matches, it will vanish.

In the castle hallway (23)
If you go up the stairs to the top of the tower, they collapse 
behind you and you can't get back down.

At the top of the castle tower (25)
As you go up to the top of the tower, the stairs collapse. There is 
a monkey here waving a sword. You need to get him to drop the sword 
by giving him the bananas or dropping them here. You also find the 
instruction booklet for the dragon-charming flute here, but the monkey 
will keep snatching it away from you until you give him the bananas.
To get down from the tower, you need to make the hang-glider from the 
kit using the screwdriver, and then JUMP down to the wasteland near 
the castle. If you try to use the parachute, it will not open 
in time and you will be killed.

Outside the ruins of a lighthouse (5)

In a room in the old lighthouse (19)
There is an old boot here. You need to tip or empty the boot to find 
the screwdriver. You need this to make the hang glider at the top of 
the tower.

In a secret passage (20)
This leads from the room in the lighthouse to the dragon's lair. The 
passage collapses behind you as you go, so the only way is forwards 
to the lair.

Deep in a damp cave (16)
You can get here either by entering the cave, or by going from the 
cellar under the inn.

In a great chamber in the rock (17)
This leads to the dragon's lair to the south.

The dragon's lair (18)
You get here from the great chamber in the cave system, by riding 
the magic delivery bicycle, or by going through the secret passage 
from the lighthouse. Here the dragon is asleep, and you wake it when 
you enter. It will soon attack you unless you do something to stop 
this happening - either by playing the pipe or by killing it first.
It will spend a little time watching you while pretending to be 
asleep, giving you the opportunity to play the dragon-charming 
pipe. Once the spell on the dragon has been broken by the music, 
the creature now has its freedom and in return it gives you its 
gold, which you will have to find. It is also possible to kill the 
dragon with the enchanted sword, though this approach earns fewer 
points. To find the treasure, you need to blow the Troll's hunting 
horn to open the door to the hoard. There are some clues to help 
with this - amongst the bones in the lair is a glass bottle 
containing a piece of paper. You have to break the bottle (which 
also happens if you DROP it) to get the paper and read it. The clue 
given is: 'Search the mountain inn with care, to find an answer 
lying there'. You need to go to the inn and examine the chair and 
its carvings to find the next clue, a carving of a goblin blowing 
the horn next to the dragon.

In the dragon's store (26)
The dragon's treasure hoard is here. You need to go in here and 
take the gold or jewels to complete the game.
