Games PC THE ELDER SCROLLS I-ARENA User Manual

5 (1)

The Elder Scrolls

Arena

PlayerÕs Guide

A DIVISION OF MEDIA TECHNOLOGY LIMITED

It is illegal

to make unauthorized copies of this software

This software is protected under federal copyright law. It is illegal to make or distribute copies of this software except to make a backup copy for archival purposes only. Duplication of this software for any reason including for sale, loan, rental or gift is a federal crime. Penalties include fines of as much as $250,000.00 and jail terms of up to five years.

Bethesda Softworks, as a member of the Software Publishers Association (SPA), supports the industry’s effort to fight the illegal copying of personal computer software.

Report copyright violations to:

Software Publishers Association

1730 M Street, NW, Suite 700

Washington, DC 20036-4510

SPA Piracy Hotline:

(800) 388-7478

The Elder Scrolls™ TM and Copyright © 1993 Bethesda Softworks. All Rights Reserved. Bethesda Softworks is a trademark of Media Technology Limited.

ii

Software License Agreement

This is a legal agreement between you, the end user, and Bethesda Softworks, a division of Media Technology Limited. By opening this sealed package, or using the software, you agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. If you do not agree with the terms of the Agreement, return the unused software and all accompanying items to the place you obtained them within five (5) days of purchase for a refund.

Grant of License: Bethesda Softworks grants to you (the “Licensee”) the right to use one copy of the enclosed software program and written reference materials (the “SOFTWARE”) on a single computer at a single location subject to the terms set forth herein. Bethesda reserves all other rights not expressly granted to the Licensee. You may not transfer the SOFTWARE electronically to a network.

Copyright: This manual, packaging and the SOFTWARE are copyrighted. No part of this manual or the described SOFTWARE may be copied, reproduced, translated or reduced to any electronic medium or machine-readable form without the prior written consent of Bethesda Softworks.

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Dual Media: If the SOFTWARE package contains both 3 1/2” and 5 1/4” disks, then you may use only the disks appropriate for your single-user computer. You may not use the other disks on another computer or computer network, or loan, rent, lease, or transfer them to another user except as part of a permanent transfer (as provided above) of all SOFTWARE and written materials.

Termination: This License is effective until terminated. This License will terminate automatically without notice if you fail to comply with any provision of the License. Upon termination you shall destroy the SOFTWARE and all copies, including modified copies.

Limited Warranty

If your SOFTWARE should fail under normal use within 90 days of purchase, return it to your dealer or directly to us for a free replacement. After 90 days, enclose $10.00 and return only the specific item of defective SOFTWARE directly to us. This Warranty applies to the original purchaser only. Other than provided above, should the SOFTWARE prove defective, you, the User, shall assume the entire cost of all necessary service, repair or correction.

Customer Remedies: Bethesda’s entire liability and your exclusive remedy shall be, at Bethesda’s option, repair or replacement of the SOFTWARE that does not meet Bethesda’s Limited Warranty and which is returned to Bethesda with a copy of your receipt. This Limited Warranty is void if failure of the SOFTWARE has resulted from accident, abuse, or misapplication. Any replacement SOFTWARE will be warranted for the remainder of the original warranty period or 30 days, whichever is longer.

No Other Warranties: Bethesda disclaims all other warranties, either express or implied, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, and indirect, special, or consequential damages resulting from the use of the SOFTWARE and the accompanying written materials. This limited warranty gives you specific legal rights. You may have other rights, which vary from state to state.

This agreement is governed by the laws of the state of Maryland. Address all correspondence to: Bethesda Softworks, 1370 Piccard Drive, Rockville, MD 20850-4304.

iii

WARRANTY CARD AND WARRANTY PROTECTION

To be eligible for warranty protection, the original purchaser only must fill out and mail in the Warranty Registration Card within thirty (30) days of purchase. Failure to send in your warranty card within thirty (30) days of purchase will result in the loss of your warranty protection. Warranty protection is available only to the original purchaser. Bethesda Softworks reserves the exclusive right to determine warranty eligibility.

Contacting

Technical Support & Customer Service

Bethesda Softworks is always ready to try and help you with your software difficulties. Technical support is available at (301) 963-2002, Monday thru Friday, between 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Please be near your computer and have pencil and paper handy when calling. Customer Service is available at (301) 9268300, Monday thru Friday, between 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

The Bethesda Softworks BBS

Bethesda Softworks maintains a bulletin board service (BBS) for modem users. The direct dial telephone number is (301) 990-7552. Modem settings are: 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, no parity at speeds up to 14,400 baud. In order to use the BBS, you will need to set up an account at sign-on. In order to receive an account number, you will need to have a Warranty Card on file. Using the BBS, you may post messages and questions or receive demos or updates, 24 hours a day.

Bethesda Softworks On-Line

In an effort to support our customers, Bethesda maintains a presence on numerous online information services. Presently these services include a World Wide Web site (www.bethsoft.com), internet email (tech_support@mail.bethsoft.com), Compuserve e-mail (71333,3511), America Online e-mail (Bethesda01), and Prodigy e-mail (BJSY29B). This list may change and Users should reference Bethesda’s own BBS or World Wide Web site for the latest information on which services are supported.

Send all correspondence to:

Send all warranty materials to:

Bethesda Softworks

Bethesda Softworks

1370 Piccard Drive

P.O. Box 7877

Rockville, Maryland 20850-4304

Gaithersburg, Maryland 20898-7877

iv

Credits

Designed and Produced by:

VJ Lakshman

Programmed and Directed by:

Julian Lefay

Executive Producer:

C. S. Weaver

Programming by:

Jennifer Pratt

Foroozan Soltani

Additional Design by:

Ted Peterson

Additional Programming and Art by:

Chris Green

Fred LaBar

Rick Kauzlarich

David Lee Anderson

Music by:

Eric Heberling

Computer Art by:

Jeff Perryman

Ken Mayfield

Bryan Brossart

QA and Testing by:

Melissa Bogley

David Bogley

All the Testers

Documentation by:

VJ Lakshman

Peggy Meile

v

Table of Contents

Software License Agreement

 

& Limited Warranty.............................

iii

Warranty Protection ..............................

iv

Contacting Bethesda

 

Softworks ..............................................

iv

Credits ......................................................

v

Designer’s Note........................................

5

Installation Guide ....................................

7

Starting Options ......................................

9

Character Generation..............................

9

Character Stats .........................................

10

Choosing a Face........................................

10

Character Stats .........................................

11

Page 1 of the Character Sheet...............

13

Explanations of the modifiers ..................

14

Page 2 of the Character Sheet...............

17

Armor Ratings...........................................

18

The Races................................................

19

Character Class Descriptions ...............

21

Thief Classes .............................................

21

Thieves.......................................................

21

Burglars.....................................................

21

Assassins....................................................

22

Rogues.......................................................

22

Acrobats ....................................................

22

Bards..........................................................

23

Warrior Classes.........................................

23

Warriors ....................................................

23

Knights ......................................................

24

Rangers......................................................

24

Archers ......................................................

24

Monks........................................................

25

Barbarians .................................................

25

Mage Classes.............................................

25

Mages ........................................................

25

Sorcerers ...................................................

26

Healers.......................................................

26

Battle Mages .............................................

27

Spellswords ...............................................

27

Nightblades ...............................................

27

Character Starting

 

Equipment............................................

29

Experience Tables..................................

29

Character Condition..............................

30

Keys and Commands .............................

31

On-Screen Buttons...................................

31

Mouse General Controls ..........................

31

Mouse In Character/

 

Equipment Sheet ....................................

31

Crossed Swords icon–Attack...................

32

Sunburst icon–Cast ..................................

32

Fingers picking gold icon—Steal.............

32

vi

Hand grabbing icon–Use .........................

32

Snake-staff icon–Player Status Icon........

32

Parchment with lines icon–Logbook.......

33

Campfire icon–Camp................................

33

Automap icon–Automap/

 

Continental Map.....................................

34

ESC key–Setup Menu..............................

35

Character portrait

 

–Character Sheet ....................................

35

Mouse Controls.........................................

36

Keyboard...................................................

37

The Cities of Arena................................

39

Days and Dates.........................................

39

Talking to the People................................

40

Getting Quests ..........................................

40

The Temples..............................................

41

The Mages Guild ......................................

41

The Taverns and Inns...............................

43

The Equipment Stores..............................

44

Armor Pieces.............................................

45

Equipment Effects ....................................

45

Shields .......................................................

46

Normal Weapons......................................

47

The Palace.................................................

47

The City Gates ..........................................

47

Various Guilds ..........................................

49

Thieves Guild............................................

49

Mages Guild..............................................

49

The Dark Brotherhood ............................

49

The Blades.................................................

50

The Necromancers....................................

50

The Wharf Rats ........................................

50

The UnderKing.........................................

50

A Note on Thievery ..................................

51

A Note on Negotiating .............................

53

Traveling.................................................

55

The Continental Map ...............................

55

The Wilderness .........................................

56

Magic ......................................................

57

The Spellmaker.........................................

57

Casting Spells............................................

65

The Known Spellbook ...........................

67

The 1st Circinate.......................................

67

The 2nd Circinate .....................................

68

The 3rd Circinate......................................

69

The 4th Circinate ......................................

70

The 5th Circinate ......................................

71

The 6th Circinate ......................................

72

The 7th Circinate ......................................

73

The Arch-Circinate...................................

73

Combat ......................................................

75

Attacking ...................................................

75

Treasure.....................................................

76

Healing up.................................................

76

Damage, Diseases, Curses, Etc. ..............

77

The Bestiary..............................................

79

General Hints and Tips ............................

83

Index..........................................................

87

vii

Games PC THE ELDER SCROLLS I-ARENA User Manual

vi

THE ELDER SCROLLS

The Arena

T alin awoke in the darkened cell, his head pounding from the blow it had received. A single candle guttered and flamed in one corner. Occasionally the clink of chains could be heard as they swung in a slight, fetid breeze. He knew where he was now. It came back to him even as he struggled to his feet. Fighting off the nausea he made his way to a crude stone bench.

I have been taken by the Emperor, but for what? His thoughts were interrupted by a low moan that came drifting down the corridor outside his cell door. Suddenly he was glad for the obvious strength of his cell door. I have been left to die, he thought incredulously. They did not even bother to strip me of my possessions. Indeed, upon self examination Talin found that he still carried his dagger and his pouch of money. It seemed that the Emperor had no fears of his escape. And why should he? He did a quick circumspection of the room, finding that except for the slime covered walls and floor, no water or food had been left. A slow death indeed.

Suddenly the air near the center of the cell seemed to brighten, slowly coalescing into a globe of brilliance. Talin fell back, shielding his eyes from the glare. The light receded, and in the purple afterimages of that burst he could see the shimmering form of a woman floating, her body draped in gossamer and blown by an unseen wind.

“Do not fear Talin, for it is I, Ria Silmane.”

Talin looked on in shock as the figure of his friend took on form and substance, though somehow it did not seem to lose its edge of etherealness. “Ria! What in the name of the Lady has happened?”

Ria’s face seemed etched in grief, drawn by a sadness he could not comprehend. “Talin, do you remember the last time we saw each other? It was at the Mid Year’s festival. I fear that is where the evil took form.”

“What happened to you?” Talin asked in a shocked whisper. He had known Ria since he had been summoned to court to learn under her tutelage the ways of Sorcery. Ria had been the senior apprentice to Jagar Tharn, the Imperial Battle Mage of Tamriel.

“I am dead, Talin. Only my powers keep me in this form, though the pull to the afterlife is strong. I can resist, but only for a time. It is imperative that someone know the truth; that someone stop the evil which has struck from the heart of the Imperial Seat.”

Talin sat down once more, his legs seeming to no longer obey. Left to die in a cell, my friend already dead? What has happened to us all?

1

“The Emperor is not who he seems to be, Talin. He is in fact, Jagar Tharn. The true Emperor was captured by Tharn and shifted to another dimension, a prison in which time runs much slower than on this plane of existence.”

Talin looked up, his face a mask of shock and outrage, “But what of the Amulet of Kings?” “The Emperor is not dead. Only in the event of his demise would the Amulet warn the Elder

Council. Tharn was meticulous in his planning. With time in the dimension in which the Emperor has been imprisoned running at a fraction of what it does here, it will be centuries before the true Emperor dies. And when he does, who will care? Those people will have seen the glorious rule of Uriel Septim VII end generations in their past. Tharn must be stopped, here and now.” Ria’s face had a resolute set, one that if Talin had noticed, would have sent shivers of foreboding through his body.

Talin looked around, “Why are you here? I am but one, and not skilled in much of anything. Why not go to General Warhaft, or the Imperial Guard?”

Ria shook her head, “They have been captured along with the Emperor, and Tharn has transmorphed others to take their places, those who are loyal to him only. I cannot trust anyone else with this Talin. As you said, Tharn will not search for you as he would someone he considered a threat. Most of them are dead already. You can see the disdain the Wizard has for you, not bothering to even bind you in this cell. He does not see you as a threat, and in that arrogance he has made his first mistake.” For the first time the ghost of Ria Silmane smiled, and to Talin it was as if the sun had come from behind a cloud.

“I wish to escape, that is sure. Beyond that I know not what I can do, Ria.”

“Take this,” at Ria’s gesture a ruby key flashed into being in a niche in the northern wall of the cell, “it will unlock the cell door. You are in the sewers of the Imperial City. If you make your way west, then south, I can effect your escape.”

Talin thought a moment, “It will not do to have me surface in the City itself, for I would be quickly captured. I think it an uncommon occurrence to see a man pull himself through a grating on a city street. The guards at the least will have questions, ones I will be unable to satisfactorily answer.”

Ria smiled again, “I am not as helpless as you may suppose. Even in this form I am able to work my magic, but to do so depletes the energy I use to remain on this plane. Your escape however is paramount to all other considerations. Get to the south-west corner of this sewer.

There you will see a Shift Gate. It will transport you to another city, where you will appear inside their city gates. Teleportation between cities is common enough, I doubt you will come under scrutiny. With that you will be far enough from the center of the Empire to begin.”

Talin felt a faint fear gnaw in the pit of his stomach and he whispered, “Begin what?” “Your training, of course.”

There was an uncomfortable silence as Talin looked at his friend. He did not entirely trust his ability to help her; to really make a difference. The alternative however was to allow the man who had killed his friend to continue the charade. Talin was not one to let a lie go unanswered. Ria concerned him however. Even now he could see the fringes of her form dissipating, and her face took on a worn and lined expression, as if she were tiring. He did not relish the idea of being alone in this, not knowing who he could trust. “Will I see you again?”

2

“If you survive these sewers and escape, I will come to you again. There is much I must investigate first so that we may find a way to free the Emperor from the dimension in which Tharn has placed him. Only by his release will the truth come to light. Remember Talin, Tharn has taken on the form of the Emperor, and no one will gainsay his word for yours. Had I been able I would have appeared to the Elder Council, but my body lies close by, forgotten and decayed. In this form I cannot travel far from my mortal remains.” Ria looked down, her once wheaten tresses hanging limply as the ethereal wind diminished, “I cannot come to you again as I have now. It takes energy I dare not squander.”

She reached out and touched Talin on the forehead. He felt a slight tingling, like an itch behind his eyes. A moment later it was gone. “I have linked us so that I can appear to you regardless of the distance, but I will only appear to you henceforth in your dreams. The way is safer and less costly. It is very important that you rest now and again, when you are safe. It will only be during those time that I can reach you.” Ria looked into Talin’s eyes, “You are entering a dangerous arena, my friend. One in which the players are beings beyond your mortal comprehension. I see in your destiny the ability to transcend. There is a power within you as yet untapped. Look for me when you have gained some experience in the world. You are my last and best hope, Talin.”

Before Talin could respond the form of Ria faded from view. In the deepening gloom Talin could feel the icy fingers of fear creeping slowly back into his flesh. Then the glint of ruby caught his eye. He walked over to the niche and picked up the key. It felt warm to the touch, and strangely comforting. He thought about his friend Ria, dead now though she clung to unlife for the sake of justice. He thought about Jagar Tharn, who had killed his friend and attempted his own life. Such evil could not be permitted to grow, or go unchecked. Looking about the cell his purpose became clearer, as if his ruminations had opened a door to the beginnings of understanding. Perhaps Ria had ensorcelled

key to produce this reaction, he knew not, but a litany old Armsmaster came to mind and he whispered, “Given the outcome of certain death, die with a blade in hand. The cell door was a massive construction of iron and

steel. He paused only a moment to listen. The moaning was gone, but from the darkness he could hear dozens of tiny claws skittering and scratching the damp mossy brownstone. Occasionally red eyes gleamed out at him. Talin inserted the key to the lock and turned it. With a groan the mechanism released and the cell door swung open on rusty hinges the noise nothing flew out from the darkness to attack as if the sewer itself had decided he was no threat, and its back on him. “Tharn,” he thought, “you will not so easily.” Grabbing the candle from its holder Talin

both breath and dagger as he ventured into the darkened hall...

3

The Quest

To rescue the Emperor from the dimension in which Jagar Tharn

has imprisoned him, by recovering the eight pieces of the Staff of Chaos.

4

DesignerÕs Note

Remember the old pencil-and-paper RPG’s? The limits of your adventure were only defined by your own imagination. The dungeon mas-

ter didn’t force anyone down a particular path (if he knew what he

was doing) but instead allowed the players to explore the world he had created. If you wanted to stay in the town and become a local hero, fine. If instead you wished to step into the shoes of a starship Captain and save the universe, that was also fine. A good DM had lots of imagination, and all the answers. The players provided the adventure.

In The Elder Scrolls, we have strived to put the fun back into role-playing. We have given the world many areas of exploration, over four hundred places where death can be dealt in new and exciting ways. It is a place where those of you who love combat and spell casting can earn fame and fortune by proving your prowess in battle. Among the hundreds of quests present in the world, the opportunity to save the Empire is there, for those who are brave or foolhardy enough to seek it out. We plan to dedicate further expansion and adventure modules to giving people new areas to explore or other mysteries to solve.

In The Elder Scrolls there is no absolute right or wrong. We have always held that the idea of “good vs. evil” is a bit cliché, however effective it may be for running a story. Things in the real world are rarely black and white. We did include an overall quest for those of you who wish to participate in the never ending battle of Light vs. Darkness. Failing this, however, only means that particular character or adventurer has met an unfortunate end, not that the game is over for the dozens of other characters you might otherwise have chosen to play. If you wish to become a thief who robs innocent nobles, fine. If you wish to play a warrior who makes it his mission in life to kill these thieves, that’s fine too. All we did is give the computer all the parameters of the Land, from NPCs and their motivations, to monsters and their treasures, to nobles and their quests. The rest is up to you.

The quest outlined in the introduction is to rescue the Emperor from the dimension in which Jagar Tharn has imprisoned him, by recovering the eight pieces of the Staff of Chaos. Learn the world and its ways well, however, before you journey down this road. The Arena can be deadly to the uninitiated. Explore as often as possible, perhaps using the many crypts and forgotten lairs around

5

the land to hone your skills. This will give you the experience necessary to win against stronger and tougher adversaries later in the game. I suggest you pay attention to any dreams or messages you may receive. The information contained in them can be very valuable, even necessary to complete the final quest successfully. There are many tests of character in the quest to recover the Staff of Chaos. The eight pieces of the Staff are the only way to open the gate to the world in which the Emperor has been banished. Bide your time and gain experience. Neither the Emperor nor the pieces of the Staff are going anywhere...

Creating a CRPG for the first time was a sometimes frustrating, always exciting, and wholly enjoyable process. Many nights were spent discussing different aspects of the game, trying to make sure that you, the consumer, would get to journey within in the most realistic fantasy environment possible without being forced into yet another boring world (any of us can do that by just looking out the window). Our commitment and goal was to create the strongest fantasy role-playing game possible. It was very important to us that the people who bought TES:Arena got as much enjoyment out of playing it as we did creating it. As with any creative endeavor however we know that we do not have all the answers. Your feedback on TES: Arena is very important to us. We invite your letters, suggestions and comments, so that together we may make future chapters of The Elder Scrolls as good as they can be.

With that said, may your sword be sharp and your spells close at hand, for your adventure begins here...

VJ Lakshman

Chief Designer

6

Installation Guide

Installing the Game:

To install the game place disk #1 into your computer’s floppy drive, then type the drive letter corresponding to that drive. Once the onscreen prompt shows you are logged onto the drive in which you placed the Arena Disk #1, type INSTALL. Hit the ENTER key on your keyboard. Follow the onscreen prompts to install the game.

Example:

If you have a 3.5” floppy drive called the ‘B’ drive, do the following. (keyboard commands will be bold)

1.Place Arena disk #1 into the B drive.

2.Type, B:

3.Type, INSTALL

4.Follow the onscreen prompts to install Arena onto your hard disk.

We highly recommend that you use SMARTDRIVE to speed up disk access during gameplay. For more information consult your DOS manual or look at the General Hints and Tips section in the back of this manual.

Arena will not run off of floppy disks and is meant to run on IBM or 100% compatible machines with DOS version 5.0 or greater. We have also found that Disk Doubler® or other disk compression routines for hard disks may have adverse affects on running the The Elder Scrolls: Arena. If you have any questions consult your DOS manual or contact our customer support service at (301) 963-2002, Monday thru Friday, 11 am to 5 pm Eastern standard time.

Configuring Arena to your system:

You will need to configure the Sound FX and Music drivers once Arena has successfully installed if you have a sound card and wish to play the game with sound and/or music. To do so you must choose the ‘Configure Game’ option. Once done you will see the following choices:

7

Select Sound Card

Select Music Card

Change Sound Default

Change Music Default

Done

You can select your sound and music card using the first two options. Consult your sound card manual for precise instructions on type and settings for your particular card. Not using the correct setting may cause problems with your system. For your information Arena is shipped with the following default settings:

Sound/Music card selected:

No sound

Base I/O address:

220 Hex

Base IRQ setting:

7

Base DMA setting:

1

Playing Arena:

From the \ARENA directory created during the install you must type arena to play the game. Select Load Game if you wish to load a previously played game you have saved. Select Start New Game if this is your first time playing. Select Exit to exit back to DOS.

8

Starting Options

1. Start new game:

This will begin a new game, reinitializing quests and NPC’s in the world. You will want to select this option the first time you play.

2. Load saved game:

Brings up a menu of saved games from which you can pick one to play. Play will resume where it was last saved.

3. Exit:

This option exits you to the wonderful world of DOS

Character Generation

You will be given two choices:

1)Generate

2)Select

Option 1 will allow you to generate a character based upon a set of 10 questions that will determine which character class best suits your personality. Follow the onscreen prompts to create your character. You DO NOT have to select this class as the one you wish to play. The class chosen for you only reflects what you would probably survive longest as, based upon the way you answered the questions. Use it only as a guideline. When you are finished, follow the onscreen prompts to rolling up your stats.

Or select Option 2 which will just bring up a pick list of the 18 character classes for you to choose the one you wish to play. When you are finished, follow the onscreen prompts to rolling up your stats.

9

Character Stats

Once you have selected your homeland and your name, and answered the questions that will aid you in choosing your class, or selected your class using the Select option, you will enter the stat generation section. All stats range from 1 to 100, with 50 being average. You will notice that you have a range of stats based upon the race you have chosen, and a box that shows your Bonus points. These points can be distributed amongst your stats to personalize your character. Remember to follow the advice given to you about what stats are important for success as the class you have chosen. All classes have two governing stats and six secondary stats.

Remember, a stat of 50 is average. It means that 50% of the people in the world are better than you in this particular area, and 50% are not. Using Strength as an example, a STR of 72 would mean that my character was stronger than 71% of the people in the Empire. People with a 72 STR would be my equal, and those with a higher rating would be stronger.

When you are finished click ‘Done’ to continue to the next section.

Choosing a Face

After you have finished distributing

10

Character Stats

There are 8 governing stats that make up your character in the world of Arena. Here is a list of them and their explanations:

1. Strength: STR

This governs how strong you are. It affects how much damage you do in combat and is a factor in determining your fatigue points. Strength also affects how much you can carry and not be encumbered, and how far you can jump. It is essential that any warrior class have a high Strength.

2. Intelligence: INT

This governs how smart you are. It affects the total amount of spell points you get to cast spells with. Intelligence affects your chances in negotiating for items and other purchases. It also affects your chances of figuring out a lock in case you wish to pick it. It is essential that any mage or thief has a high Intelligence.

3. Willpower: WIL

This governs how mentally tough you are. It affects your ability to withstand or resist spells. It affects your ability to negotiate successfully with shop owners and innkeepers. It is vital that any character wishing to be adequately defended against spells should have a high Willpower.

4. Agility: AGI

This governs how nimble you are. It directly affects your chances of hitting an enemy with a melee weapon, your chance of getting hit in hand to hand melee, and your chance of getting hit by targeted spells. It also affects your chance to steal an item or pick a lock. It is essential for thief class characters to have a high Agility.

5. Speed:

SPD

This governs how fast you are. It directly affects your movement rate in and out of combat, and the fire rate if you are using a missile weapon. It is important that any class characters have a high Speed.

11

6. Endurance: END

This governs how healthy you are. It directly affects your hit points, your healing rate, and is a factor in determining your fatigue points. It also affects your resistance to poisons and other drugs that you may come into contact with while adventuring. It is essential that warrior class characters have a high Endurance.

7. Personality: PER

This governs how charming and socially acceptable you are. It directly affects your ability to negotiate with other people you may meet in your travels. It is essential for any person wishing to interact with others have a high Personality.

8. Luck:

LUC

This governs how fate affects you. It is a powerful modifier to any action you may take, whether it be attacking, defending, stealing, or anything else. It is important, but not essential, for any character class to have a high Luck. Remember, just as in other stats your character can be ‘lucky’ or ‘unlucky’ depending upon your luck score. The average is 50.

12

Character Sheet

Page 1

Your chosen name is here

Your chosen race is here

 

Your chosen class is here

Health: Your current hit points here

Fatigue: 2 - 200 fatigue points rating here

Gold: Your current gold here

Done This button

Level: Your current level

Next Page This takes you

exits the screen

is shown here

to page 2 of the Character

Experience: Your current

 

Sheet

 

 

experience points are

 

 

shown here.

 

 

13

Explanations of the modifiers

As with all other modifiers in the game, a positive modifier is a bonus to your abilities, a negative modifier is a penalty to your abilities. The modifiers listed above next to each stat define the following:

STR

Damage - This number modifies that amount of damage you inflict in hand to hand combat. People with STR ratings 55 and above will have a positive modifier; those with 45 and below will have a negative modifier.

Max Kilos - This is the maximum amount you can carry in kilos. As you reach this max you will find yourself getting more encumbered. As characters carry more and more, they suffer gradual penalties to their fatigue until they cannot move or swing.

INT

Spell Pts. - The number here represents the amount of magical power a spellcaster has. Non-spellcasters will have a 0 in this slot. Spellcasters will have a range from 2 to 200. Sorcerers can have a range here from 3 - 300. As a spellcaster’s INT rating increases, so will his or her spell points available for casting.

WIL

Magic Def. - This number represents the penalty or bonus an opposing spellcaster gets when attacking you. The higher your WIL, the better chance you have of resisting spells cast at you.

AGI

To Hit - This number represents the bonus or penalty you receive when attacking an opponent in hand to hand melee. The higher your AGI rating, the better your chance of hitting your opponent.

To Def. - This number represents the addition or reduction to your Armor Rating because of your natural agility or clumsiness. The higher your AGI rating, the more is subtracted from your Armor Rating. Remember, the lower your Armor Rating, the more protected you are.

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SPD

General - Although speed is explained under the Stats section, it is important to mention here that a character with a higher SPD rating turns quicker, and runs faster. These advantages, or penalties, can make the difference for you between life and death.

END

Health - This number represents how many health points are added or subtracted from your health during character generation and each time you level. Characters with a high END rating will receive more health points on average each time they gain a level.

Heal Mod - This percentage represents the modification to the base healing rate every character has. You heal a certain percentage of your total health points for each hour of rest. This number is added or subtracted from that percentage. Therefore characters with a higher END will heal faster for each hour of rest.

PER

Charisma - This number represents the modification to the base chance of successfully negotiating with the different people you may meet while adventuring in the land. Characters with a high PER rating will find it much easier to get cheaper prices, better sales, and more information from those people they meet.

LUC

General - It is important to mention here that LUC can have a profound effect upon your life. Characters with a high LUC rating find that they have a better chance at everything they attempt to do. Conversely, those with a low LUC rating find that things don’t always work out their way.

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Character Sheet

 

Page 2

Your name here

Your class here

Your race here

Your current level here

Character Portrait

Equipment

Your list of equipment will go here.

Right clicking a piece of equipment will give you info on that particular piece.

Left clicking an item will equip it, if possible. Equipped items will be displayed in yellow. Equipable items will be displayed in tan. Unequipable items will be displayed in red. Unidentified magical items will be displayed

in cyan.

Your various armor ratings will show up on this character portrait.

See ‘Armor Ratings’.

Unidentified magical items that are equipped will be displayed in bright cyan.

The arrows will scroll through your equipment

You may carry up to 40 items

Drop: Drop will drop a highlighted item from the inventory

Spellbook: Spellbook will list spells in the equipment area. Clicking a spell will allow you to see its effects.

Exit: Exit goes to page 1 of the character sheet

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Armor Ratings

On this character sheet you will see numbers printed next to your body. These numbers represent your level of protection on various parts of your body. Armor ratings range from +10 (unprotected) down through 0, to negative numbers which represent better and better protection. Basically, the lower your AR is, the better protected you are. Therefore a character with +10 rating is less protected than a character with +3 rating, and a character with a -4 rating is better protected than either of the above.

The numbers on your figure are positioned to represent various parts of your body. They are arranged as follows, from top downward (we have put the armor piece that protects this area in parenthesis):

Head (helm)

 

R Shoulder

L Shoulder

Chest

(pauldrons)

 

(cuirass)

 

Hands

 

(gauntlets)

 

Waist and Legs

(greaves)

Lower Legs

and Feet

(boots)

For a complete explanation of Armor, armor pieces, AR ratings and the effects of equipment, see Equipment Store.

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The Races

Here is a brief description of each of the races, their strengths, and their suitability to a particular art:

Nords:

Nords hail from the province of Skyrim. They are a tall and fairskinned people who are strong, willful, and hardy. It is rumored that growing in their arctic environment has inured them to its effects, for they seem to shrug off all but the coldest of attacks. Nords take half damage from Cold based attacks, and on a successful saving throw take no damage. They are excellent in all arts concerning the blade and shield.

Khajiit:

Khajiit hail from the province of Elsweyr. They are a fair skinned people who are extremely hardy, intelligent, and agile. Legend has it that they descended from an intelligent feline race, for they still retain a strange cast to their features. Many Khajiit have taken to painting their faces to more resemble their distant cousins, the predatory cats that hunt the great desert. Khajiit are expert climbers, able to scale chasm wall sides with speed unmatched by any other race. They are adept at all arts involving thieving and sleight of hand.

Redguards:

Redguards hail from the province of Hammerfell. They are a stocky, powerful race that are known to be extremely hardy and quick. Legend has it that the Redguard are innately more proficient at weapons than any other race. Redguards receive their (level / 3) as a bonus to hit and damage with any melee weapon (ie...excluding bows). They are excellent in all arts concerning the blade and shield.

Bretons:

Bretons hail from the province of High Rock. They are a tall, darkhaired people. Bretons are a highly intelligent and willful people, and have an outgoing personality. It is said that Bretons are weaned on magic, for it seems to suffuse their very being. As a result Bretons take half damage from any Magic based attacks, and no damage on a successful save. They are excellent in all the arcane arts.

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Argonians:

Argonians hail from the province of Black Marsh. They are a highly evolved race of reptilians, at home in any marsh-like environment from which they hail. They are known for their intelligence, agility, and speed. Because of their reptilian nature, Argonians do not tire easily while swimming, and seldom drown. They can also swim faster than any other race. They are adept at any art involving the arcane, or involving thievery and sleight of hand.

Wood Elves:

Wood Elves hail from the province of Valenwood. They are a people of the forests, matching their features to all that is found growing in the green woods of their homeland. They are known to be extremely agile and quick. Wood Elves receive their (level / 3) as a bonus to hit and damage with any bow weapon. They are well suited towards any class, although their nimbleness serves them best in any art involving thievery.

High Elves:

High Elves hail from the island province of Summurset. They are a tall, golden-skinned people with almond shaped eyes. High Elves are extremely intelligent, agile, and willful. High Elves seem drawn to magic as a moth is to flame. They have a natural affinity to its use, and often make quite formidable wizards. High Elves are naturally immune to paralyzation. They are adept at any art involving the arcane.

Dark Elves:

Dark Elves hail from the province of Morrowind. They are a tall, dark-skinned people with red, glowing eyes. They are known to be extremely strong and intelligent, and very quick. Dark Elves seem innately attuned to weaving magic with weapons. Dark Elves receive their (level / 4) as a bonus to hit and damage with any melee or ranged weapon. They are adept in any art involving the blade and shield combined with the arcane arts.

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Character Class

Descriptions

Thief Classes

Although all thieves and thief sub-classes have the ability to pick locks, pick pockets, and steal items, various classes have certain advantages or disadvantages in these areas. The governing statistics for all thief classes are Agility and Intelligence. A high Speed rating is also very desirable.

Thieves

Quick, agile, cunning, Thieves use agility and speed to steal for a living. They are useful in combat to surprise the enemy, scout, or try for critical hits. Thieves have a chance per level of experience to score a critical hit when attacking an opponent. A critical hit is defined as 3x the damage the weapon normally does. Thieves are the fastest to rise in experience levels. They start with 25 health points plus a d10 in health.

Thieves have the ability to pick locks and pockets. This ability increases as the Thief increases in levels.

Weapons:

Dagger, Shortsword, Broadsword, Saber, War

 

Axe, Short Bow

Armor:

Leather only

Shield:

Buckler only

Starting Health:

25 + d10

Burglars

Burglars are adept at picking locks and infiltrating different areas. They do this better than any other class, honing their skills to be able to find ways into areas thought inaccessible. They are very useful when exploring new dungeons, palaces, or other areas where others may be stopped by locked doors and/or chests. Because of the delicate nature of their work, they are restricted in the armor they may wear and the weapons they may carry. They may not use shields. Burglars also receive a chance per level to score a critical strike (3x damage) when attacking an opponent, though they are not as adept at this as Thieves.

Weapons:

Dagger, Short Sword, Tanto, Short Bow

Armor:

Leather only

Shields:

None

Starting Health:

25 + d8

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