Games PC THE BARD S TALE III User Manual

The Bard’s Tale III

The Bard

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Contents

Introduction 94
Objectives 97

Getting Started
The Command Summary Card 97

Pre-Built Parties 98
Creating Characters 98
Viewing Your Characters 102
Onscreen Statistics 104
Special Characters 104
Moving Up In Levels 105
Places 106
Combat Systems 107
Items And Equipment 109
Magic Users 110
Conjurer Spells 112
Magician Spells 114
Sorcerer Spells 116
Wizard Spells 118
Archmage Spells 120
Chronomancer Spells 121
Geomancer Spells 122
Bard Songs 124

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OBJECTIVES

You must assemble a group of adventurers who will travel to the seven

dimensions in search of the source of Skara Brae’s destruction. Along the
way, you’ll gather words, spells, and items that will help you in your final battle
against the repugnant Evil One. If you successfully destroy the Evil One,
Skara Brae will be released from the bond ofruin.

Using logic is key to surviving in each of the dimensions. Let’s say you’re
trekking around in some icy, arctic-like zone and a monstrous snow wolf steps
into your path, bares its teeth, and then proceeds to chew off your ankle. You
have a bag of spells to choose from, but one type of spell would be especially
effective. (Hint: Trying to freeze the snow wolf in an ice stor m is not the best
choice.)

Throughout the game, you’ll need to make important decisions about how
to accomplish certain tasks. You won’t want to proceed in the usual
“whatever works” method. It will pay to think it out.

GETTING STARTED

THE COMMAND SUMMARY CARD

The first thing you need to do is read the Command Summary Card,

which tells you how to get Thief of Fate running on your computer. It also
tells you how to use the disk utilities and how to transfer characters from The
Bard’s Tale I, II, Ultima III, IV and Wizardry I, II, III (The option to transfer
characters may not be available on all computers). In addition, it lists the
keystroke commands you’ll be using.

Once you load Thief of Fate and start the game, the first place you’ll be is
in the Refugee Camp (See “Refugee Camp” for more details on this important
place). From here, you’ll create your characters and decide who you want in
the party. After you select the party members, it’s into the wilderness you go.

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INTRODUCTION

As I lay dying... I pray my body does not fail me before I am able to

complete this most important missive. I pray as well that, somehow, the
heroes who once before saved Skara Brae will find this accounting and act
upon it. I leave this record so those who come after will know what horrors
that the Mad God Tarjan has perpetrated, and so that they will not be lulled
into believing that Skara Brae was his sole target.

How can I describe that day. Nay, it did not begin like all others, for on
that day we celebrated the victory over Mangar that had so recently liberated
our city. Bards from the world over arrived in Skara Brae to play and herald
the brave deeds of those heroes who saved us. The townspeople danced in
the streets with happiness, and the great festival filled all with an overwhelming
joy of life and renewed hope for the future.

Then Mangar’s Master, The Mad God Tarjan, arrived to reduce our day of
celebration into a day of mourning. His shadow sank the city into pitiless
black oblivion. Foul creatures that had festered in his flesh like maggots burst
forth to assault fair Skara Brae. People ran, but could not run swiftly enough
to escape. Tarjan’s minions left none untouched.

Forgive the shakiness of my script, for life ebbs painfully from my body as
I write. Tarjan, mocking my death curse, told me Skara Brae was merely one
in a series of conquests he had long contemplated to complete his revenge.
He laughed when I said heroes would come to destroy his mad plan, yet I
sensed fear in his voice when I promised that the legendary Hawkslayer, and
those who defeated Mangar, would return again to triumph. As payment for
my threat, he gave a swift twist of his jewelled sword into my belly.

Tarjan must be stopped. Whosoever reads this, you must get word to the
heroes. This will be their greatest challenge, for upon their efforts rests the
fate of more than Skara Brae, more than the Six Cities of the plains. Their
failure will mean the extinction of all life - save for the wretched Tarjan and his
servile
parasites. Pray for success... and life renewed.

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Dwarf: Stout and short, these people are amazingly strong and healthy.
Brightness, however, is not a shining attribute of theirs.

Hobbit: The Hobbit is deft and clever, which are ideal traits for thieving.
Their favorite boast is “A locked door is soon no more.”

Half-Elf:The result of an Elf and Human friendship, Half-Elves acquire
their fair hair and light skin from Elves, and their physical bulk from
Humans.

Half-Orc: Orcs are the henchmen of evil wizards who are capable of little
more than following orders for physical dirty work. Half-Orcs are
tempered with Human blood, so while they’re still dangerous, they aren’t
completely mindless drones forever in search of necks to wrench.

Gnome: Gnomes are much like Dwarfs, but a little more anti-social due to
a deficit in beauty. Because they’ve spent so much time studying alone,
Gnomes have developed a certain flair for magic.

Character Attributes

As you create your characters, these attributes appear above the race
categories at the top of the screen. They’re your character’s vital statistics.
These values will determine how successful your character perfor ms in his or
her class (or “profession”).

Strength (ST): Nobody really wishes to be light on might, but strength is

especially important to fighters.

Intelligence (IQ): If you don’t have brawn, then you better have brains.

Magicians get bonus spell points for high intelligence scores.

Dexterity (DX): This helps determine how fleet of feet and nimble of

hand you’ll be. A high score makes you harder to hit and helps you land

the first blow. For Rogues, the higher this value, the less likely they’ll get

their fingers snapped off in traps.

Constitution (CN): This represents your overall health. The higher this

is, the more damage your opponent must inflict on you before you need to

start thinking about death. Should you be blessed with strong constitution,

you will get bonus hit points.

Luck (LK): Luck is ambiguous and unpredictable; you never know what

alliance it has made with fate. One thing is known about luck: lucky souls

are more likely to resist evil magic and avoid traps.

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PRE-BUILT PARTIES

When you enter the Refugee Camp, you’ll find a group of adventures

called *INTERPLAYERS ready to do your bidding. They’re not the most
seasoned of adventurers, but they’re good enough for you to sample Thief of
Fate with. Use these characters to find out how commands work, what
different races and classes do, how it feels like to get repeatedly attacked, and,
in general, what the Realm is like. When you’re ready, you can create your
own characters. Refer to the Command Summary Card to find out how to
enlist their services.

CREATING CHARACTERS

Creating characters who can effectively do their jobs is one key to your

success. Use the following guidelines to create your character:

1. Select a sex.

2. Select a race.

3. On the next screen, you’ll see the attributes. If you’re not satisfied with
these attributes, press <ESC> and you’ll return to the screen with the
races. Start over again.

4. If you’re satisfied with the attributes, choose a class.

5. Name the character, and he or she will be saved on your character disk.

6. To use the character, you must add him or her to the party with the
“Add a member” command.

Sex Choose between male or female.

Sex doesn’t affect your abilities to carry out your tasks; it only affects how

you look on your Character Profile screen.

Races

Humans: Their strength and inventiveness make them one of the best
survivors. Never lacking in aggression, they can handle themselves in just
about any adverse setting.

Elf: Fair of hair and skin, the Elves are slightly taller, faster, and more agile
than humans. Although weaker, they make up for this by being more
skilled in magical arts and war strategies.

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Sorcerer: These mages weave weighty illusions, ones that a newly-made
character surely couldn’t handle. You must know at least three spell levels
from the Magician and Conjurer classes.

Wizard: Rumor of the Realm is that these mages have the power to
summon and bind creatures of the supernatural, creatures who react foully
to being dragged out of their worlds on someone else’s whim.

Archmage: Archmages must have mastered all the spells of any three
magic classes. With this hefty experience requirement, Archmages are
undoubtedly the most auspicious among those who cast spells for a living.

Geomancer: Fighters who want to convert to a life of a magic can
become Geomancers. Once they choose to change, they can still use the
armor, weapons, and magic items that the fighter classes use. Beware:
Bards lose their songs, Warriors lose their multiple attacks, Hunters lose
their critical hit ability, and Monks lose their armor class bonus and multiple
attacks. It’s part of the trade off. To become a Geomancer, you must find
the one special location that performs the rite of passage to this mage
class.

Chronomancer: Chronomancers are the travel experts of the magic
users. Before becoming one, a magic user must master all the spells of any
three mage classes. And once you become a Chronomancer, you lose the
power to use all the spells you previously learned. It may sound unfair, but
the Chronomancer needs to focus all of his or her attention on the
important dimension teleport spells. Don’t think you can get around
without this spellcaster, because you just can’t.

Tips from the Refugee Camp - Characters

• Don’t worry about losing a level 1 character; just make another one if he

or she dies. However, when your characters reach level 3, regularly back
up your character disk with your favorite disk copy utility or prepare to
shed tears over a lost character.

• If your favorite character is killed, you can resurrect him or her with

magic, or with gold if you can find a shrine that raises the dead. You can
also turn off the computer, reboot, and reload your party from the point
where you last saved them to disk (which means all the characters lose any
gold or experience points they may have earned since the last time you
saved them). Or, you can delete the dead character from your main
character disk and replace that character from your backup disk.

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Classes

No one class, or profession, is nobler than the next. As the mix of strings
on the Bard’s mandolin makes for a richer sound, so will a mix of classes
make for a richer journey. Create a party with no Rogues or Bards, and you’ll
have nobody to steal flowers for your grave and sing at your funeral. While
there are 13 classes to your choosing, only eight are available to the first-time
adventurer.

Warrior: It’s a rare weapon that this king of fighters can’t handle.

Warriors gain an extra attack capability for every four levels of experience

after the first; a reward for becoming more adept in battle.

Paladin: This fighter swears to battle all evil and uphold honor and purity.

Due to their virtuous nature, the Paladin can handle some enchanted

weapons that others can’t and also have greater resistance to spells cast on

them.

Hunter: These are the skilled assassins. Their combat approach is to aim

for the vital organs or nerve center and do away with an opponent with as

little swordplay as possible.

Monk: These are no ordinary, somber, brown-robed, porridge eaters.

Monks are actually adept fighters skilled in the ways of martial arts. While

Monks with more experience prefer to fight with their bare hands, they can

also use traditional weapons. A Monk’s armor class improves as he or she

gains levels.

Bard: Any Bard will tell you that music can do more than soothe the

savage beast. The Bard can do a number of things from creating light to

regenerating spell points with a mere stroke of the strings.

Rogue: This dexterous thief makes a living out of picking locks and

neutralizing traps. If you plan on traveling without a Rogue, prepare to pay

a high physical price for your spoils. A Rogue also has the ability to

identify mysterious items. And perhaps most important, a Rogue can be an

excellent killer due to his or her ability to sneak up close to an opponent

before he or she attacks... and you’ll soon find out just how important this

thief is to your fate.

Conjurer: Conjurers have the ability to heal wounds and create physical

phenomena like fire and light.

Magician: A Magician’s specialty is to change the properties of physical

objects, such as enchanting a sword, turning an enemy to stone, or making

a dungeon wall vanish.

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Spell Points: This category only pertains to those who cast spells. It
shows the most spell points you can ever have, or your spell point
potential. Compare the SpPt value on the Onscreen Statistics against his
to see how you’re doing. For instance, if you have 20 spell points, and the
SpPt value is 18, then you have almost all of your maximum spell points.
If, however, you’re down to 3 SpPt, then you’re almost out of power to
cast spells. You’ll have to wait until they regenerate. To regenerate spell
points, you have to be under the healing rays of the sun. They don’t
regenerate at night, so cut back on unnecessary spell activity during this
time. They also won’t regenerate in dungeons unless you stand on a magic
square, use a spell-regenerating magic item, or play a spell-regenerating
Bard’s song.

Experience: The more fights you get into (and live through) the more
experience you’ll gain. When you acquire enough experience points, you
can move up a level. How many experience points you need depends on
your class. The Old Man in the Review Board will let you know if you have

enough, and if not, how much more you need.

Gold: The more the merrier. You acquire gold by killing your enemies
and cleaning out their pockets. Gold lets you pay the Old Man his fee for
giving you spells, bribe folks for clues, buy drinks, and do a number of other
useful things. Don’t worry about buying equipment - you can’t. (Tarjan
doesn’t believe in free enterprise so he put Garth’s Equipment Shoppe out
of business with an awesome incendiary spell.) You’ll start out with the
weapon and armor that you need. Whatever else you want, you’ll have to
find.

Pool Gold: Press P to pool gold, and all the other characters will give this
character their gold.

Trade Gold: Trade gold lets you trade gold to any other character on the
roster. Press T, enter the roster number of whom you will give the gold to,
and then enter how much.

Inventory: On the next screen, you’ll see the character’s inventory (the
items he or she is carrying). See the “Items and Equipment” section for
more details.

Special Information: On the third screen, you’ll see any special
information pertaining to your character. Rogues can view their ability
percentages for things like disarming traps, identifying chests, hiding in
shadows, etc. Bards can view the number of tunes they have left. Magic
users can view a list of their spells. Hunters show critical hit percentages.
Not all characters will have this third screen of information.

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• When you roll for attributes, shoot for 16’s, 17’s and 18’s since they can

make a big difference. For example, high dexterity gives you bonus armor

protection and first-strike capabilities; luck often lets you survive if you

accidentally spring a trap; constitution provides all characters with extra hit

points; and high intelligence gives mages bonus spell points in later turns.

• Certain races rely on certain attributes being strong. A mage who is

strong but not intelligent is at a far greater disadvantage than a mage who

is intelligent but weak.

• Develop a Sorcerer quickly to use in dungeons. Wizards, too, are

important because they can summon extremely powerful special members.

Work toward Archmagedom. You’ll also need to prepare at least one

character for the role of Chronomancer.

• Experiment with Hunters. They can often kill superior monsters quickly

because of their critical hit capabilities. Rogues also have excellent critical

hit abilities, but only when they hide in the shadows. And don’t dismiss the

Monk as a lightweight best left chanting in the monastery; after the sixth

level, they’re probably the best fighters of all the classes.

• You can always enlist the services of special members and save them to

your party.

• Beware of certain magic squares. Keep an eye on your character’s

statistics while exploring. If you see that your character’s spell or hit points

are dropping for no apparent reason, your character is probably on a

magic square that drains power - jump off the square before he or she is

sapped of all strength.

VIEWING YOUR CHARACTERS

At almost any time during the game, you can call up a character to see

what his or her status is and what he or she possesses. To do this, enter the
character’s number. (To view a character’s status without bringing up his or
her picture, press <Shift> and the character’s number.) On the first screen,
you’ll see the following:

Level: The higher the value, the better your character will perform in his

or her role. All newly-made characters start out as level 1. As you gain

more experience, you can advance in levels (see “Moving Up in Levels”).

Sex, Race, Class, Attribute Values: You learned all about these when

you created your characters.

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