Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site ucla-cs.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!whuxl!whuxlm!harpo!decvax!ittvax!dcdwest!sdcsvax!sdcrdcf!trwrb!cepu!ucla-cs!srt From: srt@ucla-cs.UUCP Newsgroups: net.games.hack Subject: Re: dead lizards Message-ID: <4644@ucla-cs.ARPA> Date: Wed, 3-Apr-85 14:51:53 EST Article-I.D.: ucla-cs.4644 Posted: Wed Apr 3 14:51:53 1985 Date-Received: Fri, 5-Apr-85 05:04:16 EST References: <353@desint.UUCP> <399@wjvax.UUCP> Reply-To: srt@ucla-cs.UUCP (Scott Turner) Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department Lines: 36 Summary: In article <399@wjvax.UUCP> ron@wjvax.UUCP (Ron Christian) writes: ...cockatrices... >A single life and death decision should NOT be a matter of luck only. This >part of the game needs to be thought out a little better. Even if you had >*one* turn to do something after you hear the hissing, it would mean something >(save against magic, rather than blind chance). > >By the way: in mythology, it was the *glance* of the cock that turns you to >stone. The breath of the cock (or the basilisk) was so foul it would melt >stone and wither vegitation. > >I think this monster needs a little work. >-- I have to agree with this. I should also point out that poison works the same way - at times its a sure kill (i.e., The dart was poisoned! -more-). This attitude is a hold-over from AD&D, I think, where there is a saving throw against some things (stoning, poison) and if you fail, you're dead. The question is, how can it be (easily) fixed up. HACK doesn't have fuses like some of the other versions of ROGUE, so it is difficult to implement things that happen some time in the future (i.e., so you could have the hissing be a warning of impending stoning, or have the character die after 3 turns of poison). I'm not sure how hard it would be to add fuses to HACK. Another possibility is to make stoning in HACK be like stoning in SROGUE. In this case, you start to feel your limbs stiffening (slowing you down) and if you don't do something about it, you eventually turn to stone and are unable to move (curiously, you don't die). As far as making the cockatrice a line of sight monster (like U), I think that would be a bit too deadly. One has to remember that the mythological cockatrice was a very rare creature. -- Scott Turner