"Weishaupt Scholars" by Michael Martin [This source text, as a whole, is licensed under the Creative Commons by-nc-nd 3.0 license. The game *logic* - material that is not part of the game text - is available with under the more liberal Creative Commons Attribution License. For full details, see http://creativecommons.org/about/license/ .] The story headline is "An Interactive Secret History". The story genre is "Collegiate Fiction". The story creation year is 2007. The release number is 2.[* Weishaupt Scholars was developed over many releases of I7, but all released versions used Inform 7 version 4U65. Certain features of the language have since changed incompatibly. This is a slightly edited version of the original source text that is suitably modified to compile on currently available versions of I7. Edits made to the text will be clearly marked, but do not effect gameplay. This text has been tested on 5J39 with Reactable Quips Version 8, and it should compile without incident on any build version 5G67 or later. 4W37 and 4X60 are likely to be problematic.] The story description is "Oh sure, it sounds romantic as all get-out. Secret meetings, a shadowy power structure that reaches throughout the world, and they'll even pay your way through college to get there. Then they take you on once you're done, and you too can be a mover and a shaker. 'Training tomorrow's unlikeliest leaders,' they said. Of course, what this means in practice is the same grind everyone else has, plus being called away to do meaningless or incomprehensible tasks at all hours by people you are even now only dimly able to recognize. Well, it still beats working your way through college. Your Unknown Benefactors have been getting more insistent lately that you keep up your training, though. You haven't slacked; something is up. It just better not conflict with your upcoming physics test. --- Take on the roles of Hal, Benj, and Janet -- the three newest members of the shadowy conspiratorial group known only as the Weishaupt Foundation. Vie against rival conspiracies and your own baffling superiors to reach the Awful Truth." Include Basic Screen Effects by Emily Short. Include Reactable Quips by Michael Martin. Use American dialect, the serial comma, full-length room descriptions, memory economy, and no scoring. Release along with cover art, an introductory booklet, and a website. Release along with the source text.[*This is disabled for standard releases.] [ There was some stuff I wanted to do but never managed to handle properly. - ASK BIAN ABOUT LOYALTY and MORALITY in Ch 4 - too broad to write. - Gag: Bogus 'STALLMAN' object as with the truck in Ch 5 - not actually funny enough, and there are frankly enough Easter Eggs in this game as it is. - Benj should have some ability to confront Chatarras about the mind whammy, but the phrasing required for this baffled even the people who thought it was necessary.] Book I - Utilities and Rule Changes Part 1 - Game-specific rules Chapter 1 - Agents An agent is a kind of value. The agents are aHal, aBenj, aJanet.[* We can't have kinds of value have the same name as objects; the compiler gets all kinds of confused.] An agent status is a kind of value. The agent statuses are s_unknown, OK, RIVAL, CAPTURED, COMPROMISED, and NEUTRALIZED. The specification of agent is "A kind of value representing which player character is currently active." The specification of agent status is "A kind of value representing the status in the plot of an important character. These are displayed at chapter breaks as long as the status is not 'unknown to the player'." To say the name of (a - an agent): say "[if a is aHal]Hal[end if][if a is aBenj]Benj[end if][if a is aJanet]Janet" When play begins: change the right hand status line to "Agent: [the name of the current agent]"; The current agent is an agent that varies. The current agent is aHal. Hal's status is an agent status that varies. Hal's status is s_unknown. Benj's status is an agent status that varies. Benj's status is s_unknown. Janet's status is an agent status that varies. Janet's status is s_unknown. Bian's status is an agent status that varies. Bian's status is s_unknown. Chapter 2 - One-use topics [Many lines of dialogue need to only come up once. This code manages all that logic.] The last before quipping rule when the current quip is a quip listed in the Table of One-Use Quips: if the current quip has been exhausted, change the current quip to quip_covered; otherwise exhaust the current quip quip. To decide whether (q - a quip) has been exhausted: if there is a burncount corresponding to a quip of q in the Table of One-Use Quips, decide yes; otherwise decide no. To decide whether (q - a quip) has not been exhausted: if there is a burncount corresponding to a quip of q in the Table of One-Use Quips, decide no; otherwise decide yes. To exhaust the (q - a quip) quip: change (the burncount corresponding to a quip of q in the Table of One-Use Quips) to 1. Table of Quip Texts (continued) quip quiptext quip_covered "That topic's been well-covered already." quip_requiresfact "[bracket]Though you may have a reason to ask about this, [the name of the current agent] lacks the context or knowledge to at this time.[close bracket]" [Yeah, OK, so this would probably be nicer to have spread out through the source.] Table of One-Use Quips quip burncount quip_ar_benj a number quip_ar_alchemists quip_ar_jmission quip_ar_bmission quip_ar_balchemists sf_bself sf_blab sf_bgame sf_blawrence sf_bfringe sf_isubgenius sf_igame sf_ibian sf_ilawrence admin_cultists quip_2hhal quip_2hbenj quip_2hjanet quip_2hfnord quip_2hpager quip_2hdoors quip_2hessay quip_2hcult quip_thwork quip_2bjanet quip_2bfnord quip_2bpager quip_2bdoors quip_2bcultists quip_2bescape quip_tbfnord brief_qhal brief_qself brief_qcult brief_qceiling brief_qbenj brief_bceiling brief_qpager brief_qskinner brief_bskinner raid_card2 raid_benj raid_shades raid_trenchcoat raid_subgenius raid_hal raid_janet raid_psi dl_pizza dl_papers dl_journals dl_Benj dl_subgenius dl_research dl_consent dl_premeds dl_psych dl_Janet_captured dl_chain_of_command dl_friends dl_solution dl_league dl_ask_bian dl_t_papers dl_t_Benj dl_t_Janet dl_t_Self fb_grailkin fb_priory fb_c_bian fb_c_hal fb_c_benj fb_c_janet fb_c_self fb_c_saint fb_c_voice fb_c_teamup fb_c_mission fb_c_counter fb_c_subgenii fb_c_police fb_c_results fb_c_jesus fb_s_bian fb_s_hal fb_s_benj fb_s_self fb_s_voice fb_s_foundation fb_s_league fb_s_mission fr_health Part 2 - World Model extensions Chapter 1 - Improved doors A door is either automatic or non-automatic. A door is usually automatic. Before going through a closed automatic door (called d): say "(first opening [the d])"; try silently opening d; if d is not open, stop the action. Check attacking when the current agent is aJanet and the noun is a door (this is the can't kick doors down rule): say "The thing about kicking doors in is that it's really hard to unkick them afterwards." instead. Knocking is an action applying to one thing. Understand "knock [something]" or "knock on [something]" as knocking. Does the player mean knocking a door: it is likely. Before knocking an open door, say "Knocking on a door that's already open is kind of unnecessary." instead. Check knocking a door (this is the block knocking doors rule): say "You'd just as soon not announce your presence." instead. Check knocking a person (this is the redirect knocking a person to attacking rule): try attacking the noun instead. Check knocking (this is the generic block knocking rule): say "Knocking on that would be silly." Chapter 2 - Facts [We use these all over the place to represent player knowledge of things.] A fact is a kind of value. The facts are known and unknown. The specification of fact is "A simple variable representing whether or not a piece of information has been presented." Chapter 3 - Proper handling of "all" Rule for deciding whether all includes scenery: It does not. Rule for deciding whether all includes people: It does not. Chapter 4 - Suspects [Suspects are a special kind of person used to represent generic citizens in "Shadows Shadowed". Their outfits are set so that five individuals, of random gender and outfit, will appear each turn. One of them -- the culprit -- is always present. The others always look (a) different from the culprit, and (b) different from any suspect who appeared last turn. For additional implementation specific to that scene, consult Book II, Part 5.] Dye is a kind of value. The dyes are red, black, grey, yellow, beige, blue, and green. [Everything appearing after "shirt" is female-only. Anything appearing before "shirt", inclusive, is unisex.] Garment is a kind of value. The garments are hat, coat, backpack, pants, shorts, shirt, skirt, purse, dress, and blouse. To decide whether (g - a garment) has an article: if g is pants, no; if g is shorts, no; yes. To say (g - a garment) preposition: if g is hat or g is backpack or g is purse, say "with"; otherwise say "in". A suspect is a kind of person. A suspect has a dye. A suspect has a garment. Understand the dye property as describing a suspect. Understand the garment property as describing a suspect. The description of a suspect is usually "The people of the city all kind of blend into one another after a while." A suspect is always scenery. Rule for printing the name of a suspect (called s): say "the [specific outfit of s]". To say generic outfit of (s - a suspect): say "[if s is female]wo[end if]man [the garment of s preposition] [if the garment of s has an article]a [end if][dye of s] [garment of s]". To say specific outfit of (s - a suspect): say "[if s is female]wo[end if]man [the garment of s preposition] [if the garment of s has an article]the [end if][dye of s] [garment of s]". The culprit is a suspect that varies. When play begins: change the culprit to a random suspect; re-dress the culprit. To decide if the costume of (s - a suspect) is acceptable: let g be the garment of s; if s is male and g is greater than shirt, decide no; if s is the culprit, decide yes; if g is the garment of the culprit and the dye of s is the dye of the culprit, decide no; repeat through the Table of So Sixty Seconds Ago Outfits begin; if the g is the gar entry and the dye of s is the col entry, decide no; end repeat; decide yes. To re-dress (s - a suspect): while s is s begin; change the dye of s to a random dye; change the garment of s to a random garment; if the costume of s is acceptable, stop; end while. Table of So Sixty Seconds Ago Outfits col gar a dye a garment with 4 blank rows Chapter 5 - Vicinities and generic "GO" or "LEAVE" A vicinity is a kind of room. The specification of a vicinity is "A kind of room in which there is a natural direction to go (OUT)." Procedural rule when the location is a vicinity: ignore the block vaguely going rule. Rule for supplying a missing noun while going: if the location is a vicinity, change the noun to outside. Chapter 6 - Limbo [Limbo is our generic room for stuff that's kind of out of play but kind of not. It's largely a vestige of the days of I7 in which you couldn't entirely erase an exit.] Limbo is a room. "You have uncovered a serious bug; it should not be possible to end up here. Enter UNDO immediately upon entering or you will be unable to resume play." Instead of going to Limbo, say "You can't go that way." Chapter 7 - Endnotes [This is I6 code to replace the Game Over sequence so that it instead asks you if you want to see the ENDNOTES instead of seeing AMUSING things. This is totally not guaranteed to work on anything other than 4U65, but it does the job in 5J37 as well. Later versions of the I6 library may force this to be tweaked a bit.] Include (- Replace AfterGameOver; -) before the library. Include (- [ AfterGameOver i; .RRQPL; print "^Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game"; #Ifdef DEATH_MENTION_UNDO; print ", UNDO your last move"; #Endif; if (TASKS_PROVIDED == 0) print ", give the FULL score for that game"; #ifdef NI_BUILD_COUNT; if (deadflag == 2 && (I7_Amusing_Provided())) print ", read the ENDNOTES"; #ifnot; if (deadflag == 2 && AMUSING_PROVIDED == 0) print ", read the ENDNOTES"; #endif; ! NI_BUILD_COUNT #ifdef I7_SERIAL_COMMA; print ","; #endif; print " or QUIT?^"; .RRQL; print "> "; #ifdef NI_BUILD_COUNT; say__p = 0; #endif; #Ifdef TARGET_ZCODE; #IfV3; read buffer parse; #Endif; ! V3 temp_global=0; #IfV5; read buffer parse DrawStatusLine; #Endif; ! V5 #Ifnot; ! TARGET_GLULX KeyboardPrimitive(buffer, parse); #Endif; ! TARGET_ i = parse-->1; if (i == QUIT1__WD or QUIT2__WD) { #Ifdef TARGET_ZCODE; quit; #Ifnot; ! TARGET_GLULX quit; #Endif; ! TARGET_ } if (i == RESTART__WD) { #Ifdef TARGET_ZCODE; @restart; #Ifnot; ! TARGET_GLULX @restart; #Endif; ! TARGET_ } if (i == RESTORE__WD) { action = ##Restore; noun = 0; second = 0; actor = player; RestoreSub(); jump RRQPL; } if (i == FULLSCORE1__WD or FULLSCORE2__WD && TASKS_PROVIDED==0) { new_line; FullScoreSub(); jump RRQPL; } #ifdef NI_BUILD_COUNT; if (deadflag == 2 && (i == AMUSING__WD or 'ENDNOTES' or 'NOTES') && I7_Amusing_Provided()) { new_line; CarryOutActivity(AMUSING_ACT, 0); jump RRQPL; } #ifnot; ! NI_BUILD_COUNT; if (deadflag == 2 && i == AMUSING__WD && AMUSING_PROVIDED==0) { new_line; Amusing(); jump RRQPL; } #endif; ! NI_BUILD_COUNT #IfV5; if (i == UNDO1__WD or UNDO2__WD or UNDO3__WD) { #ifdef PREVENT_UNDO; print "The use of UNDO is forbidden in this game.^"; jump RRQPL; #ifnot; ! PREVENT_UNDO; if (undo_flag == 0) { L__M(##Miscellany, 6); jump RRQPL; } if (undo_flag == 1) jump UndoFailed2; #Ifdef TARGET_ZCODE; @restore_undo i; #Ifnot; ! TARGET_GLULX @restoreundo i; i = (~~i); #Endif; ! TARGET_ if (i == 0) { .UndoFailed2; L__M(##Miscellany, 7); } jump RRQPL; #endif; ! PREVENT_UNDO } #Endif; ! V5 L__M(##Miscellany, 8); jump RRQL; ]; -) Chapter 8 - Optional NPC in ASK and TELL The default converser is a person that varies. The default converser is yourself. Asking generically is an action applying to one topic. Understand "ask about [text]" or "a [text]" as asking generically. Telling generically is an action with past participle told, applying to one topic. Understand "tell about [text]" and "t [text]" as telling generically. Check asking generically (This is the check for only one sensible converser rule): if the number of persons enclosed by the location is two begin; repeat with candidate running through the persons enclosed by the location begin; if the candidate is not the player, change the default converser to the candidate; end repeat; end if. Check asking generically (This is the check for sensible converser rule): if the default converser is yourself, say "[bracket]I can't figure out who you want to talk to.[close bracket][paragraph break]" instead; if the default converser is not visible, say "[The default converser] isn't here anymore." instead. Check asking generically (This is the convert to asking it about rule): try asking the default converser about the topic understood instead. The check for only one sensible converser rule is listed in the check telling generically rules. The check for sensible converser rule is listed in the check telling generically rules. Check telling generically (this is the convert to telling it about rule): try telling the default converser about the topic understood instead. The convert to asking it about rule is listed last in the check asking generically rules. The convert to telling it about rule is listed last in the check telling generically rules. Before asking or telling or answering (this is the log latest converser rule): change the default converser to the noun. After going: change the default converser to yourself; continue the action. Part 3 - New Actions [Each character has a slightly different attitude towards the world, and this is reflected in their refusals to do various things.] Chapter 1 - New Handling of Old Actions This is the new block pointless activity rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal]That wouldn't have any relevant effects in the current situation.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]That wouldn't help.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]Pointless." instead. This is the new block giving rule: say "You'd rather keep [the noun] to yourself." instead. This is the new block swearing rule: say "[if the current agent is aJanet][random assent].[end if][if the current agent is not aJanet]The really choice profanity should be reserved for situations worse than this one, really." instead. To say random assent: choose a random row in the Table of Assent; say "[assent entry]". Table of Assent assent "Quite" "No doubt" "Indeed" This is the new block listening rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal]Nothing you hear seems relevant.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]You hear nothing unexpected.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You don't hear anything that demands a response." instead. This is the new block saying sorry rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal]No need.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]Ehn, I wouldn't worry about it.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You've done nothing worth apologizing for." instead. This is the new block singing rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal]This really isn't the place or time.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]This isn't a karaoke bar.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]Not your style." instead. This is the new block thinking rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal]You pause to gather your thoughts.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]You ponder your situation for a moment.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]That's [italic type]your[roman type] job." instead. This is the new block waking up rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal]You did that this morning.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]Hah. You wish.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You already have." instead. The new block giving rule is listed instead of the block giving rule in the check giving it to rules. The new block pointless activity rule is listed instead of the block rubbing rule in the check rubbing rules. The new block pointless activity rule is listed instead of the block waving hands rule in the check waving hands rules. The new block pointless activity rule is listed instead of the futile to throw things at inanimate objects rule in the check throwing it at rules. The new block pointless activity rule is listed instead of the block tasting rule in the check tasting rules. The new block pointless activity rule is listed instead of the block kissing rule in the check kissing rules. The new block swearing rule is listed instead of the block swearing obscenely rule in the check swearing obscenely rules. The new block listening rule is listed instead of the block listening rule in the check listening to rules. The new block saying sorry rule is listed instead of the block saying sorry rule in the check saying sorry rules. The new block singing rule is listed instead of the block singing rule in the check singing rules. The new block thinking rule is listed instead of the block thinking rule in the check thinking rules. The new block waking up rule is listed instead of the block waking up rule in the check waking up rules. Understand "look out [something]" as searching. [This is for windows.] Understand the command "raid" as "search".[* The Scholars launch plenty of raids, but the only item the player is ever really cued to raid is the fridge.] Section Regarding the Rules of Engagement Attacking it with is an action applying to one touchable thing and one carried thing. Understand "attack [something] with [something]" as attacking it with. Check attacking it with (this is the can't attack with non-weapons rule): if the second noun is not the fighting technique, say "That's not a useful weapon." instead. Carry out attacking it with: try attacking the noun. Understand the command "slap" or "pwn" or "pwnz0r" or "kick" or "ninj" or as "attack". Understand "kung fu [something]" as attacking. Understand "kung fu [something] with [something]" as attacking it with. Understand "give [something] what for" as attacking. Understand "show [something] what for" as attacking. Understand the command "murder" or "kill" or "torture" as something new. Using excessive violence is an action applying to one visible thing. Understand "kill [something]" as using excessive violence. Understand the command "murder" or "torture" as "kill". Check using excessive violence (this is the can't kill what isn't alive rule): if the noun is not a person, say "You can't kill what isn't alive." instead. Check using excessive violence (this is the block excessive violence rule): say "[if the current agent is aHal or the current agent is aBenj]Extreme violence is really more Janet's forte.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]That level of violence really isn't necessary for these sorts of operations." This is the new reject violence rule: say "[if the current agent is aHal or the current agent is aBenj]Extreme violence is really more Janet's forte.[otherwise]That's one of the few places violence isn't the answer." instead. [The check life property for attacking rule is not listed in any rulebook.[*This rule was required in 4S08 but is no longer required.]] The new reject violence rule is listed instead of the block attacking rule in the check attacking rules. The new reject violence rule is listed instead of the block burning rule in the check burning rules. Instead of attacking yourself: say "That's never the answer." Instead of using excessive violence yourself: say "That's never the answer." Section Regarding the Oppression of Slashficcers and Promotion of Virtue Understand the command "oy" or "leeg" or "omg" or "wtf" as "bother". [The next two rules had their priorities shifted to before specific kiss rules in 4U65, so we have to fix that because otherwise fun messages don't happen.] Instead of kissing a male person when the current agent is aHal or the current agent is aBenj (this is the Hal and Benj are straight rule): say "You don't swing that way." Instead of kissing a female person when the current agent is aJanet (This is the Janet is straight rule): say "You don't swing that way." The Hal and Benj are straight rule is listed last in the instead rules. The Janet is straight rule is listed last in the instead rules. Instead of tasting a person, say "[if the current agent is aHal]That's rarely a suitable way to proceed.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]Ew. No.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]Going around licking people is inappropriate behavior for a conspiracy agent, even a trainee.[end if]". [This actually triggers on > HUG ME, but as it involves affection we mark it here.] Instead of kissing yourself: say "Oh, come on. Pull yourself together." Check searching a person: say "[if the current agent is aHal]You doubt you could get away with that.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]That's more than kind of unprofessional.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You don't have the kind of enforcement powers to make that stick.[end if]" instead. Instead of searching yourself: say "Okay. [run paragraph on]"; try taking inventory. Understand "listen [something]" as listening. Chapter 2 - Facing The Great Indoors is a region. Understand "look [direction]" as facing. Facing is an action applying to one visible thing. Report facing: say "You see nothing interesting that way." The ceiling_proxy is a backdrop. The printed name is "ceiling". Understand "ceiling" as the ceiling_proxy. Does the player mean doing something with the ceiling_proxy: it is unlikely. Instead of examining the ceiling_proxy, try facing up. The ceiling_proxy is in The Great Indoors. The floor_proxy is a backdrop. The printed name is "floor". Understand "floor" as the floor_proxy. Does the player mean doing something with the floor_proxy: it is unlikely. Instead of examining the floor_proxy, try facing down. Instead of putting something on the floor_proxy, try dropping the noun. The floor_proxy is in The Great Indoors. Instead of pushing or opening the ceiling_proxy when the location is Psychology Lab: say "That would get you access to the crawlspace, but this isn't a good place to do that. Find somewhere more hidden." Instead of pushing or opening the ceiling_proxy when the location is in Knuth Hall: say "That wouldn't do you any good, and you don't think you can reliably reach it, anyway." Instead of pushing or opening the ceiling_proxy in the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room when the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is trapped, try going north. Instead of pushing or opening the ceiling_proxy when the location is in Priory Base, say "That would probably hide you pretty well, but you don't have any hope of actually getting into the ceiling without help. You also rather doubt that you're stealthy enough to move while in its crawlspace. Janet might have been able to manage it, but you can't." Before examining a direction: try facing the noun instead. Chapter 3 - Playing Playing is an action applying to one thing. Understand "play [something]" or "play with [something]" as playing. Check playing (this is the block playing rule): say "That's not something you can play." instead. Chapter 4 - Hiding A room can be exposing or concealing. A room is usually exposing. Hiding is an action applying to nothing. Understand "hide" or "take cover" as hiding. Check hiding (this is the block hiding rule): say "[if the location is concealing]Just being here hides you pretty well.[otherwise]There aren't any good hiding places here." instead. Chapter 5 - Cleaning [The CLEAN command usually maps to RUB. We want it to be the same as PICK UP, since that's important in Chapter 1.] Understand the command "clean" as something new. Understand the command "clean" as "take". Understand "clean up [something]" or "clean [something] up" or "pack up [something]" or "pack [something] up" as taking. [This usually requires a noun. When it doesn't, custom Understand rules will be used.] Chapter 6 - Picking Locks Lockpicking is an action applying to one thing. Understand "pick lock/locks on [something]" or "pick lock/locks in [something]" as lockpicking. Understand "pick lock/locks" or "defeat lock/locks" as lockpicking. Lockpicking it with is an action applying to two things. Understand "pick lock on [something] with [something]" or "pick lock in [something] with [something]" as lockpicking it with. Some lockpicks are a thing. Understand "lockpick" or "lock pick/picks" or "pick/picks" as the lockpicks. The description is "Your lockpicks are small, thin, flexible strips of metal. You've had a fair amount of practice with them, courtesy the Weishaupt Foundation, and you can defeat most mechanical locks as long as you have them." [We want to prioritize doors and containers when supplying missing nouns. Nothing else provides lockable, so we have no generic case.] Rule for supplying a missing noun when lockpicking: let n be the number of locked doors in the location; if n is 1 begin; change the noun to a random locked door in the location; stop; otherwise if n >= 2; say "You will need to be more specific about what lock you want to pick."; stop; end if; let n be the number of locked containers in the location; if n is 1 begin; change the noun to a random locked container in the location; stop; otherwise if n >= 2; say "You will need to be more specific about what lock you want to pick."; stop; end if; let n be the number of doors in the location; if n is 1 begin; change the noun to a random door in the location; stop; otherwise if n >= 2; say "You will need to be more specific about what lock you want to pick."; stop; end if; let n be the number of containers in the location; if n is 1 begin; change the noun to a random container in the location; stop; otherwise if n >= 2; say "You will need to be more specific about what lock you want to pick."; stop; end if; say "You don't see anything with a lock on it here." [Without these, > PICK LOCK ON defaults to the lockpicks themselves, which is silly.] Does the player mean lockpicking a locked door: it is very likely. Does the player mean lockpicking a locked container: it is very likely. Does the player mean lockpicking a door: it is likely. Does the player mean lockpicking a container: it is likely. Instead of unlocking something with the lockpicks, try lockpicking the noun. Check lockpicking it with (this is the can only pick locks with lockpicks rule): if the second noun is not the lockpicks, say "[The second noun] isn't really suited to picking locks." instead. Check lockpicking it with (this is the redirect to lockpicking rule): try lockpicking the noun instead. Check lockpicking (this is the check lockpicking ability rule):[* This rule should really be after the need lockpicks rule, but we want to emphasize to the player that Benj has lockpicking skills.] if the current agent is not aBenj, say "You generally relied on Benj to defeat locks for you." instead. Check lockpicking (this is the can't lockpick what isn't lockable rule): if the noun provides the property lockable and the noun is lockable, continue the action; say "[The noun] has no lock to pick." instead. Check lockpicking (this is the can't lockpick what isn't locked rule): if the noun is not locked, say "[The noun] is already unlocked." instead. Check lockpicking (this is the need lockpicks rule): if the lockpicks are not carried, say "You aren't carrying the proper tools." instead. Carry out lockpicking: now the noun is unlocked. Report lockpicking: say "You fiddle with your lockpicks and manage to defeat the lock on [the noun]." Instead of locking something with the lockpicks (this is the lockpicking is one-way rule): say "That would be an awful lot of work for no good purpose." Chapter 7 - Ineffectual Verbs and Honest Mistakes Praying is an action applying to nothing. Understand "pray" as praying. Report praying: say "[if the current agent is aHal]You never got the knack of praying; heck, your parents were so nonreligious you had accurate information on Eris and Cthulhu before you got it on God.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]You generally only catch yourself praying when you're in a blind panic; at the moment you're reasonably under control.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You aren't really a praying woman, but you concentrate briefly to refocus your thought and balance." Dancing is an action applying to nothing. Understand "dance" as dancing. Dancing specifically is an action applying to one topic. Understand "dance [text]" as dancing specifically. Carry out dancing specifically: try dancing. Report dancing: say "[if the current agent is aHal]Bian's tried to have you play DDR before, and you can't even manage that.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]Your dancing is probably bad enough to violate international treaties.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You prefer sparring to dance." Casting xyzzy is an action applying to nothing. Understand "xyzzy" as casting xyzzy. Report casting xyzzy: say "[if the current agent is aHal]There probably [italic type]are[roman type] some magical traditions out there based on Crowther and Woods, but you aren't really a member of any of them.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]That trick only works in adventure games.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You briefly review the techniques for computing cross products: [cross product equation] And then the letters rotate. Seems easy enough." To say cross product equation: say "A[bold type]x[roman type] = B[bold type]y[roman type]C[bold type]z[roman type] - B[bold type]z[roman type]C[bold type]y[roman type]". Searching vaguely is an action applying to nothing. Understand "search" or "search room" as searching vaguely. Check searching vaguely (this is the block searching vaguely rule): say "[bracket]You can't just search generically. Use a command like LOOK to get a grasp on your surroundings as a whole, or EXAMINE [italic type](object)[roman type] for individual items of interest.[close bracket][paragraph break]" instead. Understand "talk to [something]" as a mistake ("[bracket]To converse with a character, use a command like ASK JANITOR ABOUT KEYS or TELL POLICEMAN ABOUT CRIME. To give a character orders, try a command like ROBOT, GO EAST.[close bracket]"). Understand "page" or "page [text]" as a mistake ("The Weishaupt Foundation's pagers are reception-only[if the pager is not carried]. Besides, you don't even have your pager right now[end if].") [> USE is useless. We block it here.] Understand "use" or "use [text]" as a mistake ("[bracket]USE is an overly generic verb; you must supply a more specific verb. If you want a list of commonly available rules, check the beginner's guide by typing HELP.[close bracket]"). Part 4 - Utility Phrases Chapter 1 - Handling Chapter Breaks [This displays a nice little status screen and chapter header.] To start chapter (chapter num - a text) named (chapter title - a text): clear the screen; say paragraph break; center "WEISHAUPT SCHOLARS"; say paragraph break; center chapter num; center chapter title; say paragraph break; if Hal's status is not s_unknown, center "[bold type]Active Agent: [the name of the current agent][roman type]"; [* As this is used for the main title as well, this suppresses the agent-specific status information for it.] say paragraph break; if Hal's status is not s_unknown, center "Hal's status: [Hal's status]"; if Benj's status is not s_unknown, center "Benj's status: [Benj's status]"; if Janet's status is not s_unknown, center "Janet's status: [Janet's status]"; if Bian's status is not s_unknown, center "Bian's status: [Bian's status]"; say paragraph break; center "[bracket]Press SPACE[close bracket]"; wait for the SPACE key; clear the screen; say paragraph break. [Generally speaking, all inventory is lost at chapter breaks and reassigned. This automates that.] The prop bin is a container. To strip the player: now every thing carried by the player is in the prop bin; now every thing worn by the player is in the prop bin. Chapter 2 - Directing the parser To have the parser notice (curio - an object): (- PronounNotice({curio});-) Chapter 3 - Glaring Gaps In The Inform Library To decide if (x - a number) is between (min - a number) and (max - a number): if x is less than min, decide no; if x is greater than max, decide no; decide yes. To blank out (t - a table-name) entirely: repeat through t begin; blank out the whole row; end repeat. To say no line break -- running on: do nothing. Chapter 4 - Workarounds for bugs in Inform 7 Build 4U65 [This chapter must be deleted when shifting to a version of I7 post-4X60. The code appears in the official release, but will just break things in a modern I7 system.] [A thing can be proper-named. Proper-named translates into Inform as "proper". The etherkey is a thing. The matching key of a door is usually the etherkey. The matching key of the office file cabinets is the etherkey. The matching key of the surplus file cabinets is the etherkey.] Book II - The game Part Prologue - Cross-chapter concerns Chapter 1 - Objects common to all agents The pager is carried. The description is "This is the pager the Weishaupt Foundation gave to you when you signed on. [if the current agent is aHal]It's got a vaguely Masonic sigil imprinted on it.[end if][if the current agent is aBenj]It lets them summon you without using any probably tapped phone lines. God only knows what else it does.[end if][if the current agent is aJanet]It lets your superiors summon you without tying you to any kind of exploitable regular schedule." Instead of dropping, throwing, putting, or inserting when the noun is the pager: say "This is not the sort of thing to leave lying around." Instead of giving or showing when the noun is the pager: say "This is not the sort of thing to be flaunting." Instead of attacking the pager: say "Your scholarship, to some degree, depends on this device and its masters. Best to leave it alone." Chapter 2 - PC descriptions [Some versions of I7 refused to allow you to directly set 'the description of the player', complaining of multiple assignment. We thus do it dynamically.] When play begins, change the description of the player to "[if the current agent is aHal]You won't be starring in any spy movies anytime soon, except maybe as Smug Bureaucrat #3. Still, you're living proof that athleticism isn't everything in this field[end if][if the current agent is aBenj][Benj's self-desc][end if][if the current agent is aJanet]You're in somewhat better shape, and a lot stronger, than you were a year or so ago before your initation, but you're still basically the same old Janet[end if]." Benj's self-image is a fact that varies. Benj's self-image is unknown. To say Benj's self-desc: say "[if Benj's self-image is known]Your self-image remains intact[otherwise]As good-looking as ever -- which in your case means good-looking enough that your friends marvel at how you remain single, but not good enough that you actually get any extra romantic attention"; change Benj's self-image to known. Chapter 3 - Scoring - or rather, tracking the outcome of events A Basic Event Outcome is a kind of value. The Basic Event Outcomes are beo_none and beo_completed. The Alchemy Raid Rating is a Basic Event Outcome that varies. The Alchemy Raid Rating is beo_none. The Social Fallout Rating is a Basic Event Outcome that varies. The Social Fallout Rating is beo_none. Slack Attack Outcome is a kind of value. The Slack Attack Outcomes are sao_none, sao_captured, sao_outwitted, and sao_outmaneuvered. Slack Attack Rating is a Slack Attack Outcome that varies. The Slack Attack Rating is sao_none. Ceiling Tile Outcome is a kind of value. The Ceiling Tile Outcomes are cto_none, cto_dodged, cto_deactivated, and cto_outmaneuvered. Ceiling Tile Rating is a Ceiling Tile Outcome that varies. The Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_none. Skinner Briefing Rating is a Basic Event Outcome that varies. The Skinner Briefing Rating is beo_none. Skinner Raid Outcome is a kind of value. The Skinner Raid Outcomes are sro_none, sro_captured, sro_hid, and sro_fought. Skinner Raid Rating is a Skinner Raid Outcome that varies. The Skinner Raid Rating is sro_none. Divided Loyalties Outcome is a kind of value. The Divided Loyalties Outcomes are dlo_none, dlo_turned, dlo_neutralized, dlo_recovered, dlo_strong, dlo_fired. Divided Loyalties Rating is a Divided Loyalties Outcome that varies. The Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_none. Shadows Shadowed Outcome is a kind of value. The Shadows Shadowed Outcomes are sso_none, sso_failed, sso_intercepted, and sso_discovered. Shadows Shadowed Rating is a Shadows Shadowed Outcome that varies. The Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_none. Final Briefing Outcome is a kind of value. The Final Briefing Outcomes are fbo_none, fbo_anticlimax, and fbo_completed. The Final Briefing Rating is a Final Briefing Outcome that varies. The Final Briefing Rating is fbo_none. Final Raid Rating is a Basic Event Outcome that varies. The Final Raid Rating is beo_none. To say accomplishments list: say "[if Alchemy Raid Rating is beo_completed] The team raided a secret society of alchemists operating out of the basement of the Chemistry building.[end if][if Social Fallout Rating is a beo_completed] Hal located and retrieved Bian's keycard.[end if][if Slack Attack Rating is sao_captured] Benj was captured by the SubGenii.[end if][if Slack Attack Rating is sao_outwitted] Benj tricked his way past the SubGenii cultists.[end if][if Slack Attack Rating is sao_outmaneuvered] Benj evaded the SubGenii cultists by finding an unguarded exit.[end if][if Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_dodged] Janet confronted the trapped briefing room head-on.[end if][if Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_deactivated] Janet found and deactivated the control systems for the trapped briefing room.[end if][if Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_outmaneuvered] Janet traversed the trapped briefing room by letting Benj trip the traps first."; if the Skinner Briefing Rating is beo_completed, say "[if Slack Attack Rating is sao_captured] Hal and Janet were dispatched to rescue Benj.[otherwise] Benj deliberately turned himself over to the SubGenii so that Hal and Janet could track them."; if the Skinner Raid Rating is not sro_none, say "[if Skinner Raid Rating is sro_captured] Janet was captured attempting to retreive Benj[end if][if Skinner Raid Rating is sro_hid] Janet evaded Benj's captors to rescue him[end if][if Skinner Raid Rating is sro_fought] Janet defeated Benj's captors to rescue him[end if][if Skinner Raid Rating is not sro_captured and Slack Attack Rating is sao_captured]. (Benj had already been interrogated anyway.)[otherwise].[end if]"; say "[if Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_turned] Hal convinced Bian to turn from her former masters in the League of de Molay.[end if][if Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_neutralized] Bian cut ties with the League of de Molay.[end if][if Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_recovered] Bian managed to save her position in the League of de Molay.[end if][if Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_strong] Hal and Bian came to a detente regarding their situation.[end if][if Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_fired] The League of de Molay cut ties with Bian."; say "[if Skinner Raid Rating is sro_captured and Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_failed] Janet failed to defend Bian from capture.[end if][if Skinner Raid Rating is not sro_captured and Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_failed] Janet failed to defend Hal and Bian from some kind of third-party assailants.[end if][if Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_discovered] Janet drew away a third-party attack on Hal and Bian.[end if][if Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_intercepted] Janet intercepted third-party assailants targeting Hal and Bian."; if Final Briefing Rating is not fbo_none, say "[if Final Briefing Rating is fbo_anticlimax] Benj fobbed off a crisis onto the professionals[end if][if Final Briefing Rating is fbo_completed and Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_failed] The team was sent to rescue Bian[end if][if Final Briefing Rating is fbo_completed and Shadows Shadowed Rating is not sso_failed] The team was sent to protect Bian by disrupting the Priory power structure[end if]."; if Final Raid Rating is beo_completed, say "[if Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_failed] Benj helped Bian escape from her captors and stabilized the local power structure[otherwise] Benj disrupted Priory activities and stabilized the local power structure[end if]."; This is the new announce the score rule: if Alchemy Raid Rating is beo_none begin; say "You have not yet reached any major plot points."; otherwise; say "The following notable events have occurred:[line break]"; say accomplishments list; end if. The new announce the score rule is listed instead of the announce the score rule in the carry out requesting the score rules. To say effectiveness rating: let r be 20; if the Slack Attack Rating is sao_outwitted, increment r by 20; if the Slack Attack Rating is sao_outmaneuvered, increment r by 20; if the Skinner Raid Rating is sro_hid, increment r by 15; if the Skinner Raid Rating is sro_fought, increment r by 20; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_turned, increment r by 20; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_neutralized, increment r by 15; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_fired, increment r by 15; if the Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_intercepted, increment r by 20; if the Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_discovered, increment r by 15; say "[r]%". To say subtlety rating: let r be 0; if the Slack Attack Rating is sao_outwitted, increment r by 10; if the Slack Attack Rating is sao_outmaneuvered, increment r by 20; if the Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_deactivated, increment r by 10; if the Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_outmaneuvered, increment r by 20; if the Skinner Raid Rating is sro_hid, increment r by 20; if the Skinner Raid Rating is sro_fought, increment r by 5; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_recovered, increment r by 20; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_strong, increment r by 20; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_neutralized, increment r by 5; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_fired, increment r by 20; if the Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_intercepted, increment r by 20; say "[r]%". To say canonicality rating: let r be 0; if the Slack Attack Rating is sao_outwitted, increment r by 20; if the Ceiling Tile Rating is cto_dodged, increment r by 20; if the Skinner Raid Rating is sro_fought, increment r by 20; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_recovered, increment r by 20; if the Divided Loyalties Rating is dlo_strong, increment r by 20; if the Shadows Shadowed Rating is sso_failed, increment r by 20; if r is 100 and Final Briefing Rating is not fbo_anticlimax, decrement r by 1;[* This Easter Egg ending forms the Last Lousy Point.] say "[r]%". Part 1 - Hal - Prelude Chapter 1A - Alchemy Raid Alchemy Raid is a scene. Alchemy Raid begins when play begins. When Alchemy Raid begins: start chapter "An Interactive Secret History" named "by Michael Martin"; change Hal's status to OK; change Benj's status to OK; change Janet's status to OK; change the current agent to aHal; strip the player; now the pager is carried by the player; Start chapter "Chapter 1" named "Prelude"; say "The map that Saint gave you worked out. It's all true. There really is a secret society of alchemists meeting underneath the Chemistry building. They actually have been siphoning materials from the labs. And they are, apparently, totally out of touch with reality. They're also apparently up to something. With luck, after this, they won't be anymore." When Alchemy Raid ends, change the Alchemy Raid Rating to beo_completed. The player is in Eye of the Storm. The Eye of the Storm is a vicinity. The description is "This place was never that organized to begin with, but in the aftermath of your little team's raid, it's even messier than usual. Tables and cabinets have been overturned in the melee which announced your presence -- a fat lot of good it did them, too. Death walks beside you; fortunately, she's on your side. Your lockbreaker has done his job, but you've still got your own part to play. The sharp scent of chemicals fills the air, but as best you can tell in the dim light, nothing's really been spilled. Those documents your secret masters want should still be intact[if unvisited]. You got the offer clear back in high school, and even now, it sounds like a sweet deal on paper. Secret meetings, a shadowy power structure that reaches throughout the world, and they'll even pay your way through college to grant you the privilege of joining it. Real knowledge, and the opportunity to put it to use. 'Training tomorrow's unlikeliest leaders,' they said. You'd get on-the-job training too, alongside your studies. You were never really much for the ROTC aspect of all this, and the direct violence is much more Janet's job, but really, if your Unknown Benefactors are going to have you spend your weekend stealing documents from a mad alchemical brotherhood, couldn't they at least have recommended that you do some wind sprints to get ready? The documents. Right. They've got to be around here somewhere[end if]." A thing called some cabinets are here. The description is "They're mostly ordinary looking file cabinets, though they have various runes and alchemical symbols painted on them[if open]. In the cabinets you can see [contents of the cabinets][end if]." The cabinets are scenery. The cabinets are closed, openable containers. Understand "cabinet", "drawer", and "drawers" as the cabinets. Some chemicals are here. The chemicals are scenery. The description is "Liquids and powders locked up in various containers. Many of them are in disarray, but no containers seem to have shattered." Instead of smelling the chemicals, say "The chemicals here all look properly sealed, but there's a sharp tang of [italic type]something[roman type] in the air." Instead of taking the chemicals, say "They belong to the university." Instead of tasting the chemicals, say "You may be a history major, but even you know that would be a bad idea." Before eating the chemicals, try tasting the chemicals instead. Before drinking the chemicals, try tasting the chemicals instead. Some air conditioning is here. The air conditioning is scenery. Understand "air-conditioning" or "vent" or "vents" as the air conditioning. The description is "You can't see the vents from here." Instead of listening to the air conditioning, say "Just a low drone." Some unconscious alchemists are here. The alchemists are people and scenery. Understand "alchemist" or "cultist" or "cultists" as the alchemists. The description is "They'll be out of commission for a while now." Instead of attacking the alchemists, say "That's Janet's job, already quite well done." Instead of listening to the alchemists, say "They're breathing, but can't even manage to groan in pain." Instead of kissing or tasting the alchemists, say "Hmm. No. First, most of them sounded like guys, even though it's kind of hard to tell through those ridiculous robes. Even ignoring that, you have a job to do. Even ignoring [italic type]that[roman type], you don't know what kind of hideous chemicals they've managed to get on them." Instead of taking the alchemists, say "Janet seems to have taken them just fine all by herself." Instead of searching the alchemists, say "They don't seem to be carrying anything interesting, and you don't recognize any of their faces. You'll need to find some kind of documentation to get reportable information on their membership." The default ask quip of the alchemists is quip_ar_alchtalk. The default tell quip of the alchemists is quip_ar_alchtalk. Instead of giving or showing something to the alchemists, deliver the quip_ar_alchtalk quip. The soft chanting sound is here. The chanting is scenery. Instead of listening to the chanting, say "Soft chanting wafts in from above. It's from far enough away that you don't have to worry. Probably. In any event, they don't seem to be coming in to challenge you -- you suspect they haven't even worked out that you're here." Instead of doing something other than listening to the chanting, say "It's a sound; you can't do much to it besides listen." Some papers are here. The papers are scenery. Understand "papers" and "scattered" and "rustling" as the papers. The description of the papers is "Working notes and other papers got scattered about the room while Janet did her work." Instead of searching or looking under the papers, say "You flip through them, but they aren't what you're looking for." Instead of listening to the papers, say "They're rustling a little in the wind of the air conditioning." Instead of taking the papers, say "These aren't the papers you're looking for." Some candles are here. The candles are scenery. Understand "candle" as the candles. The description is "These guys are definitely insane if they're burning candles in a chemistry lab." Instead of doing anything other than examining to the candles, say "They might be crazy enough to mess around with lit candles in a chem lab, but you're not. It's enough of a miracle that they survived the melee." Some runes and some alchemical symbols are part of the cabinets. The description of the runes is "Tsk. This is regular Modern English, just written down in the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc. Sloppy, and it doesn't say much for how authentic the rest of this stuff is." The description of the symbols is "They seem authentic enough, but they do seem slanted heavily towards the ones that also appear in role-playing game supplements." Understand "rune/futhorc/futhark" as the runes. Some files are in the cabinets. The description is "Manila envelopes, each marked with a rune." Understand "envelopes" or "manila envelopes" as the files. The membership information is a thing. The printed name of the membership information is "membership file". The description is "Names and basic contact info for the alchemical cult that's been stealing material from the local chemistry labs, no doubt for some heinous scheme or other. That part wasn't really in the mission description." Understand "info" and "members" as the information. A man called Benj is here. "Benj, having gotten you in here and then gotten out of the way, is keeping an eye on your planned escape route." The description is "Benj looks pretty nondescript. You seem to recall he's a computer science major or something, but he'd fit in just about anywhere. He looks pretty nervous here, though." Instead of giving or showing the pager to Benj, say "That's really not relevant to him right now." Instead of giving or showing something to Benj, say "Benj is not amused. 'You're the one who knows what's significant here, not me.'" A woman called Janet is here. "Janet picks through the room, ensuring that what resistance there was stays neutralized." The description is "Janet supplies the brute force for your little team, and she's unnervingly good at it. She's also got a distressingly callous attitude towards humanity in general and possible rivals in particular, but that doesn't really distinguish her from the other pre-meds you know." Instead of kissing Janet, say "You like your spleen where it is." Instead of giving or showing something to Janet, say "Janet is unimpressed. 'Sorting these things out is your job.'" Understand "teammate", "lockbreaker", "Ben", and "Benjamin" as Benj. Understand "death" or "teammate" as Janet. The default ask quip of Benj is quip_ar_def. The default tell quip of Benj is quip_ar_def. The default ask quip of Janet is quip_ar_def. The default tell quip of Janet is quip_ar_def. Instead of giving or showing the pager to Janet, say "That's really not relevant to her right now." Understand "worthless/documents" as the files. Understand "other files/documents/envelopes" as the files. Understand "file" as the information. Instead of examining the files for the first time: say "Oy. These files are all written in modern English, just written down using the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc. The membership file you were looking for is easy enough to find, though."; change the printed name of the files to "other, worthless files"; change the description of the files to "The other files are mostly notes on experiments and ranting about the Mystical Marriage of fundamental forces of the Universe. You have better things to worry about than molecular fanfic."; have the parser notice the membership information; now the membership information is in the holder of the files. Instead of opening the files, try examining the files. Instead of searching the files, try examining the files. Rule for supplying a missing noun for smelling when in the Eye of the Storm: change the noun to the chemicals. Rule for supplying a missing noun for listening when in the Eye of the Storm: change the noun to the chanting. Some tables are scenery in the Eye of the Storm. "Fairly ordinary lab benches, though a number are overturned now." Every turn during Alchemy Raid (this is the raid atmospheric effects rule): if a random chance of 1 in 2 succeeds begin; choose a random row in the Table of Alchemical Mayhem; say "[incident entry][paragraph break]"; end if. Table of Alchemical Mayhem incident "One of the cultists appears to be stirring. Janet hops over and gently kicks him in the head with her steel-toed boot." "You hear soft chanting in the distance." "Somewhere, papers rustle in the air conditioning." "You hear footsteps somewhere above you. Someone must be working late." "The candles gutter a bit. That's odd. You could have sworn those were electric." Table of Quip Texts (continued) quip quiptext quip_ar_def "Now is not the time for idle chit-chat." quip_ar_runes "You're the one with the knowledge to decipher runes; it's not really the business of your teammates." quip_ar_escape "'Hey, is our escape route still clear?' 'Looks fine so far.'" quip_ar_benj "'You holding up OK?' 'Well enough, considering. I'm not really used to this kind of thing.'" quip_ar_alchemists "'Who are these guys, anyway?' 'You're supposed to be finding the documents that tell us this.'" quip_ar_jmission "'What exactly are we doing here?' 'We're disrupting the operations of these nutjobs and finding out who else is involved in their little coven.' 'Covens are for witches, not alchemists.' 'Whatever.'" quip_ar_bmission "'What exactly are we doing here?' 'Apparently, asking stupid questions and wasting time, instead of finding the information we need and getting the heck out of here.'" quip_ar_balchemists "'Who are these guys, anyway?' 'Finding that out was our mission. Aren't you supposed to be looking for some kind of membership information or something?'" quip_ar_alchtalk "They're in no shape to respond to you." Table of Ask Results (continued) NPC topic result Benj "Ben/Benj/himself/self/nervous/nervousness" quip_ar_benj Benj "battle/alchemists/documents" quip_ar_balchemists Benj "runes/writing/symbols" quip_ar_runes Benj "escape/route" quip_ar_escape Benj "mission/task/job" quip_ar_bmission Janet "battle/alchemists/documents" quip_ar_alchemists Janet "runes/writing/symbols" quip_ar_runes Janet "mission/task/job" quip_ar_jmission Persuasion rule for asking Janet to try doing something: say "Janet's busy with her own task here."; persuasion fails. Persuasion rule for asking Benj to try doing something: say "It would probably be a bad idea to divert Benj's attention at this point."; persuasion fails. Alchemy Raid ends when the player is carrying the membership information. When Alchemy Raid ends: say "You look at Janet. She nods and gestures at the door. You run for it. You'll have to drop this off with your secret masters, and then you can deal with the things that are truly important..."; remove the membership information from play; pause the game. Before going when in Eye of the Storm: say "You have not yet completed your assigned task. You need to find the membership information for this alchemical cult." instead. Chapter 1B - Social Fallout Social Fallout is a scene. Social Fallout begins when Alchemy Raid ends. Social Fallout ends when the player is carrying the Skinner keycard. When Social Fallout begins: enable Chapter 1B hints; change the default converser to yourself; move the player to Isaac's Apartment. When Social Fallout ends: change the Social Fallout Rating to beo_completed. When Social Fallout ends: say "[if we have not examined the Skinner keycard]You take a look at the keycard. It looks like it's for the Psychology building; must be Bian's. [end if]'Hey, Bian left her keycard here.' 'Hm. She'll be needing that. And you'll be seeing her again before I do; I suppose you should take it with you.' 'You're probably right. Hopefully I'll be able to make next week. See you then.' You clear out."; remove the Skinner keycard from play; pause the game. Isaac's Apartment is a vicinity. "It's not palatial, but it's pretty big for a student apartment; that's why he tends to host the game nights on weekends. Of course, the game night has pretty much wound up by now, so there's mostly just [if the remnants are on the table]the remnants of the night's Risk game and [end if]snack fragments left." A man called Isaac is here. The description is "Isaac's an older student; you and Bian met him in your math class. You've been gaming with him weekly (well, almost weekly) ever since." A woman called Bian is here. The description of Bian is "You and Bian have been friends since high school, and you've known each other quite a bit longer than that. Her family immigrated here from Vietnam under less than ideal circumstances, and you suspect it's really only due to her intelligence (and the fellowships that brought) that she's able to afford going here." Instead of kissing Bian, say "You aren't that kind of friends." Bian is wearing a thing called a light blue dress. Bian is wearing a thing called a grey backpack. The description of the light blue dress is "It's a light blue dress. It fits her well, but is still fairly modest. That's typical for her fashion sense." The description of the grey backpack is "It's a backpack much like the ones the rest of you have. It's probably had the textbooks swapped out for games, unless she had to stay late on campus today." The Skinner keycard is a thing. The printed name is "keycard". The description is "It's a keycard to the Psychology building[if we have not examined the Skinner keycard]. It must be Bian's[end if]." Understand "Bian's keycard" as the Skinner keycard. Understand "square" and "plastic" and "key" and "card" as the Skinner keycard. A table is here. The table is scenery and a supporter. The description is "It has seen many epic battles." The remnants of the night's Risk game are on the table. Understand "game" or "mess" or "board" as the remnants. The description is "It looks like Blue won." The indefinite article is "the". The remnants are scenery. [We can't use "Instead of taking for the first time" kinds of rules here because we want to short-circuit it if Bian is off-stage.] The remnants have a number called cleanliness. The cleanliness of the remnants is 0. Instead of taking the remnants: if the cleanliness of the remnants is at least 2 or Bian is off-stage begin; if Bian is in Isaac's apartment, say "[bracket]BUG[close bracket] Bian should have already left by now!"; remove the remnants from play; now the Skinner keycard is on the table; say "You pack the game away in its box and pick it up to hand to Isaac. As you pick up the box, you notice a square of plastic beneath it. Some kind of keycard?"; otherwise if the cleanliness of the remnants is 1; say "You put the cards into neat stacks and fold up the board. It's ready to pack up now, but still not put away quite yet."; change the description of the remnants to "Neatly organized piles, ready to be picked up and put away."; otherwise if the cleanliness of the remnants is 0; say "You separate the game pieces into separate piles. It'll take some more work to clean it up."; change the description of the remnants to "The game components are organized, but still not very neat."; end if; increase the cleanliness of the remnants by 1. Instead of playing the remnants, say "The game is long since over." Before going when in Isaac's Apartment: if the remnants are not off-stage, say "You promised you'd clean the game up; you may as well make good on it." instead; otherwise say "You should probably check out that keycard-looking thing left with the game." instead. [CLEAN alone during this scene should mean either the remnants or the keycard.] Understand "clean" and "clean up" and "pack" and "pack up" as taking when Social Fallout is happening. Rule for supplying a missing noun while taking: if the remnants are enclosed by the location begin; change the noun to the remnants; otherwise if the Skinner keycard is enclosed by the location; change the noun to the Skinner keycard; otherwise if the location is Isaac's apartment; say "You've already done all the cleaning you can."; otherwise; say "[bracket]BUG: understood bare take outside of the Social Fallout scene.[close bracket]"; end if. Some snack fragments are on the table. The fragments are scenery. Understand "food" or "snacks" as the fragments. The description is "It looks like mostly bits of chips or cookies." Instead of taking the fragments, say "You start to sweep up the fragments, but Isaac interrupts. 'Leave those to me, Hal; you'll just get crumbs on the floor like that.'" Instead of eating the fragments, say "That seems like it would be vaguely unsanitary." Instead of tasting the fragments, try eating the fragments. Procedural rule when eating the fragments: ignore the carrying requirements rule. Fridge contents is a fact that varies. Fridge contents is unknown. A refrigerator is here. The refrigerator is a closed openable container and scenery. Understand "fridge" or "icebox" as the refrigerator. Instead of opening the refrigerator for the first time: change the fridge contents to known; say "You check the fridge, and find yourself hideously betrayed. 'Isaac? Why is the only drink you have diet grapefruit soda?' 'We drank all the good stuff ourself. You snooze, you lose.'" Instead of opening the refrigerator, say "You really don't need anything in there. Yuck." Instead of searching the refrigerator, try opening the refrigerator. The description of the refrigerator is "It's a refrigerator[if fridge contents is known] full of diet soda and similar abominations unto all humanity.[otherwise]. It keeps food cold. And drinks. We can't forget those." Bian is either active or passive. Bian is active. Before doing anything other than examining to Bian: now Bian is passive; continue the action. Before responding with when Bian is active: now Bian is passive. Every turn during Social Fallout: if Bian is in Isaac's Apartment and Bian is active begin; repeat through the Table of Clearing Out Lines begin; deliver the line entry quip; blank out the whole row; rule succeeds; end repeat; say "Bian waves and heads out the door. 'See you next week, Isaac. Catch you later, Hal.'[paragraph break]"; now Bian is passive; remove Bian from play; end if; if Bian is not in Isaac's Apartment and a random chance of one in 3 succeeds and the player is not carrying the Skinner keycard, say "Isaac [if the remnants are on the table]waits around for you to finish picking up the remnants of the game like you promised.[otherwise]tilts his head at the square of plastic on the table." Every turn during Social Fallout: if Bian is in Isaac's Apartment and Bian is passive, now Bian is active. Table of Clearing Out Lines line sf_1 sf_2 The SubGenius Warning is a fact that varies. The SubGenius Warning is unknown. Table of Quip Texts (continued) quip quiptext sf_1 "You're now wrapping up your wild tale of why you couldn't make the game night. '... and so, after a harrowing journey, I finally managed to make it here. It took a little longer than I'd expected, because I had to ensure I wasn't being traced. I wouldn't want to bring any secret wars here. Of course I would never skip out on you guys without explanation, but I was obviously incommunicado.' They seem unimpressed. Bian manages an 'I'm [italic type]touched[roman type] by your concern' before Isaac starts speaking. 'Really, I don't mind if you can't make a session, but if you have to cancel, it would be kind of nice if you called first. You don't have to pull some story out of one of Bian's RPGs.' Bian eyes Isaac for a moment. 'Hey, don't blame [italic type]me[roman type] for this. He was like this even when we were in high school together. It's his fault I started fringewatching to begin with.' You shrug. 'Clearly, the heavy responsibilities are all mine. Need any help cleaning up?' 'Be my guest.' Bian snickers. 'He's just trying to get an excuse to raid your fridge.'" sf_1a "You attempt your best look of wide-eyed innocence. It's actually kind of hard through glasses as thick as yours. 'I am shocked -- [italic type]shocked[roman type] -- that you would make such an insinuation.' Bian lifts an eyebrow and smirks. 'Insinuation? You wound me. That was a direct statement.' You bow deeply in reply. 'As you wish.'" sf_1b "You shrug. 'Sure, if you want. It's been a long day.' Bian smiles. 'I fear we've already thwarted you, but you'll find that out soon enough.'" sf_2 "Bian shoulders her backpack and straightens out her dress." sf_bself "You gesture at her backpack. 'Long day in lab, hm? How are you holding up?' 'Well enough; I'll probably have to work overtime later to make up for this.'" sf_blab "'What are they making you do that requires so much overtime, anyway? I figured Psych wasn't all that rough...' Bian shrugs. 'It's mostly sorting through poll results and the like. We can't really process anything until we've finished interviewing the subjects, which means the real work can't be done during normal hours.' 'So, you get mornings off, then?' 'I would, except I spend those asleep.' 'Tough life.' 'Just herding our freaking subjects should qualify me for a management position on its own.'" sf_bgame "'How'd the game go?' 'Lawrence won.'" sf_blawrence "'Where is Lawrence, anyway?' 'He took off about 15 minutes ago. I'll be leaving soon, too; it would be nice to get to sleep early for a change.'" sf_bsleep "'Well, sleep well, then.' Bian nods and smiles. 'Catch you later, Hal.' She heads out the door." sf_blab2 "'Take care of yourself. You don't want to burn out in your first year.' She smiles a little. 'I'll be fine. Don't worry.'" sf_bfringe "'Speaking of fringewatching, anything interesting going on in the crazier parts of the world?' 'Well, the SubGenius guys have been getting a lot more blatant lately. I can't tell you a lot about them because of that. Those guys are dangerous, Hal. Keep clear of them.'" sf_bsubgenius "'Wait. The SubGenius? Like, [apostrophe]Bob[apostrophe] the divine drilling equipment salesman and all that? These guys are [italic type]dangerous[roman type]?' 'Granted, I haven't seen a lot, but from everything I've seen, you don't want to even get near them.'" sf_baccept "'Fair enough.' She gives you a small, sarcastic curtsey. 'Thank you for your trust, good sir.' She heads out the door, and waves as she leaves. 'See you next week, Isaac. Catch you later, Hal.'" sf_bpress "'But--' She sighs. 'No buts. Look, ask me later. I really do need to get going. Catch you later?' 'Well, alright.' She heads out." sf_igame "'How'd the game night go?' 'Well enough. Decent turnout. Just about exactly the right amount of food.'" sf_ifood "[if fridge contents is not known]'What food is left?' Isaac gestures at the fridge. 'Check for yourself.'[otherwise]'What exactly possessed you to buy a case of diet grapefruit soda?' 'Lawrence brought it. I think there was some kind of 2-for-1 sale and that was the only thing left to get for free.' 'That is totally no excuse.' 'So show up on time next time.'" sf_isubgenius "'What's the bug in Bian's hair over the SubGenii?' Isaac shrugs. 'I'm guessing she's gotten some kind of details for her game that she doesn't want spoiled. She warned the rest of us, too.'" sf_ibian "[if the SubGenius warning is known]'Bian seems on-edge. Is there something wrong?' 'Not that I know of, besides generally having a lot on her plate[otherwise]'How's Bian doing?' 'A little edgy, maybe from work stress. Other than that she seems fine[end if].'" sf_ilawrence "'How's Lawrence doing?' 'Still trying to work off the weight he gained first semester. He's been trying to keep low-calorie snacks around, but he doesn't seem to eat them any more than the rest of us do.' 'I'm sure that's very effective.' 'Well, he does seem a little slimmer than a few months ago. Maybe he's exercising.'" sf_gossip "It's impolite to talk about people in front of their face." sf_ikeycard "[bracket]BUG: sf_ikeycard[close bracket]" sf_deftell "You've really carried on enough about yourself already tonight." The default tell quip of Isaac is sf_deftell. The default tell quip of Bian is sf_deftell. Table of Quip Followups (continued) quip option result sf_1 "Resignedly accept accusation" sf_1b sf_1 "Proclaim innocence" sf_1a sf_blawrence "Bid her goodnight" sf_bsleep sf_blawrence "Worry about her" sf_blab sf_bsubgenius "Accept explanation" sf_baccept sf_bsubgenius "Press for details" sf_bpress Table of Ask Results (continued) NPC topic result Bian "self/herself/backpack" sf_bself Bian "lab/psych/psychology/work/overtime" sf_blab Bian "game/risk/night" sf_bgame Bian "lawrence" sf_blawrence Bian "fringewatching/fringe" sf_bfringe Bian "card/keycard" quip_requiresfact Bian "subgenius/subgenii/bob" sf_bsubgenius Isaac "self/himself/isaac/game/risk/night/attendance" sf_igame Isaac "food/soda/fridge/refrigerator/pop/grapefruit/diet" sf_ifood Isaac "subgenius/subgenii/bob" sf_isubgenius Isaac "card/keycard" sf_ikeycard Isaac "bian/tran" sf_ibian Isaac "lawrence" sf_ilawrence Bian "me/hal" sf_deftell Isaac "me/hal" sf_deftell Rule for quipping when the current quip is sf_ikeycard and the remnants are not on the table: try silently taking the keycard; rule succeeds. After quipping when the current quip is sf_blab: change (the result corresponding to an option of "Worry about her" in the Table of Quip Followups) to sf_blab2. After quipping when the current quip is sf_bsleep or the current quip is sf_baccept or the current quip is sf_bpress: now Bian is passive; remove Bian from play. After quipping when the current quip is sf_bsubgenius: now the SubGenius warning is known. Before quipping when Bian is in Isaac's Apartment and the current quip is sf_ibian: now Bian is passive; change the current quip to sf_gossip. Before quipping when the SubGenius warning is unknown and the current quip is sf_isubgenius: change the current quip to quip_requiresfact. Part 2 - Benj - Slack Attack Slack Attack is a scene. Slack Attack begins when Social Fallout ends. Slack Attack ends when the Slack Attack Rating is not sao_none. When Slack Attack begins: change the current agent to aBenj; strip the player; now the pager is carried by the player; now the keycard is carried by the player; Start chapter "Chapter 2" named "Slack Attack"; say "You have to admit, it's a more interesting way than most to work your way through college. But you swear, ever since you took the Weishaupt Foundation up on their offer, you've become visible to every single wacko this side of Neptune. And if you didn't know better, you'd think the Universe itself was in on the gag. Take today, for instance. The religious fanatics worshipping some god named Bob (What was it Hal had called them? 'The Subgenie' or something...) have been getting more prevalent for [italic type]weeks[roman type]. But when they decide to take a more, ahem, [italic type]active[roman type] approach to recruitment, who's the first person they target? You. And your pager went off just as class ended, so you're going to have to dodge cultists all the way to the train. Well, at least life is never boring..."; enable Chapter 2 hints; change the default converser to yourself; move the player to Lecture Hall. Chapter 2A - The Map Lecture Hall is a room. The printed name of Lecture Hall is "Outside Lecture Hall". The description is "Most of Knuth Hall's second floor is taken up by the lecture hall in room 203. The rest of the floor is mostly taken up by little lounges (accessible to the east and west). Across from the main lecture hall is a staircase leading up and down." An LH_Proxy is scenery in Lecture Hall. The printed name of LH_Proxy is "lecture hall". Understand "lecture hall" or "hall" or "room" or "room 203" as the LH_Proxy. Instead of entering the LH_Proxy, try going inside. The description of LH_Proxy is "The number 203 is prominently displayed above the double doors." Lecture Hall is west of the Front Lounge, east of the Back Lounge, and up from the Lobby. The Lobby is west of the Front Door, east of the Back Door, and north of Building Administration. Before going up when the location is the Lecture Hall, say "Those are the grad offices; your keycard won't let you in there." instead. Before going inside when the location is the Lecture Hall, say "Class is over." instead. Instead of going nowhere from the Lecture Hall, say "You can go east or west to check out the student lounges, or up and down to different floors." The description of the Front Lounge is "The Knuth lounges generally only see students when there's homework due. Clearly nothing's due on Tuesday, because this place is pretty deserted. The stairs are back to the west." Instead of going nowhere from the Front Lounge, say "The stairs are back to the west." The description of the Back Lounge is "The Knuth lounges generally only see students when there's homework due. Clearly nothing's due on Tuesday, because the couches are all empty. The stairs are back to the east." Instead of going nowhere from the Back Lounge, say "The stairs are back to the east." Some overstuffed beaten up couches are a backdrop. The couches are in the Front Lounge and the Back Lounge. The description of the couches is "The lounges are full of overstuffed, beaten-up couches. You've done several problem sets at the last minute in these." Instead of entering the couches, say "You need to get out of here. You don't really have time to relax." Understand "couch" or "sofa" or "sofas" as the couches. The printed name of the Lobby is "Lobby, Ground Floor". The description of the Lobby is "Knuth Hall's ground floor mostly has TA offices and student services. The front and back doors are to the east and west, respectively, while the building administration's offices are to the south. A staircase provides access to the classrooms and lounges on the second floor and to the basement labs." The description of Front Door is "A sizable set of double doors provides the main entrance to Knuth Hall. The hallway is lined with bulletin boards announcing various student-group meetings and class review sessions. The doors themselves are to the east." Some bulletin boards are in Front Door. The bulletin boards are scenery. Understand "board" as the boards. The description is "If the review session flyers are to be believed, it looks like you'll need to keep next Thursday evening free." The fd_proxy is in Front Door. The fd_proxy is scenery. Instead of entering the fd_proxy, try going east. The description is "You can't see much of the outside through the window in the door." Instead of facing east in Front Door, try examining the fd_proxy. Understand "door" or "front" as the fd_proxy. The description of Back Door is "The west end of Knuth has a nondescript door that leads out into the parking lot on the edge of campus. The lobby itself lies back to the east." The bd_proxy is in Back Door. The bd_proxy is scenery. Instead of entering the bd_proxy, try going west. The description is "The back door is totally opaque." Instead of facing west in Back Door, try examining the bd_proxy. Understand "door" or "back" as the bd_proxy. The Basement Stairwell is down from the Lobby. "This staircase leads from the basement to the roof. Access to relevant floors is provided by the keycards each CS student carries. The door to the undergraduate labs lies to the east." Instead of going nowhere from the Basement Stairwell, say "You can go up to the lobby, or just go east to go through the door." The Comp Sci Lab is a room. The description of Comp Sci Lab is "A narrow corridor runs down the center of this floor. Doors on all sides lead into the computer labs. The stairwell is back to the west, while the corridor continues to the east." The Corridor is east of the Comp Sci Lab. "Both the Computer Science and Mechanical Engineering departments found themselves in need of additional lab space, so the space between them was excavated. This corridor allows people to walk directly between the buildings. Lamarr Hall lies to the east." Instead of going north when the location is the Comp Sci Lab or the location is Corridor, say "You have somewhere to go, and it's not the labs." Instead of going south when the location is the Comp Sci Lab or the location is Corridor, say "You have somewhere to go, and it's not the labs." The description of Building Administration is "The admins here handle all class registration and grade reporting as well as the user accounts for CS majors such as yourself." Instead of going nowhere from Building Administration, say "The exit is north." A door called the lab door is east of the Stairwell and west of the Comp Sci Lab. It is scenery, lockable and locked. The description of the lab door is "It's a plain white door with a metal handle. There's a scanner hidden in the wall to read your keycard and unlock the door as you approach it." Instead of knocking the lab door, say "Nobody answers you." After opening the lab door: the lab door autoslams in one turn from now; say "You pull the door open." After closing the lab door: now the lab door is locked; say "The door locks with a click as you close the door." At the time when the lab door autoslams: say "[if the player is in Basement Stairwell or the player is in Comp Sci Lab]The door slams shut and locks with a click[otherwise]You hear a door slam shut in the distance[end if]."; now the lab door is closed; now the lab door is locked. Instead of lockpicking the lab door, say "The doors in Knuth have electronic locks, and you haven't been trained to defeat those yet." Chapter 2B - Escaping with help The Knuth keycard is a thing. The indefinite article is "your". The printed name is "keycard". It is either unknown broken, known broken, unknown fixed, or known fixed. It is unknown broken. The description is "Your keycard is a nondescript rectangle of green plastic, about the size of a credit card but twice as thick. It's got a tiny transmitter in it that unlocks the doors to floors you're cleared to enter. Yours [if known broken]theoretically [end if][if unknown fixed]hopefully [end if]unlocks the basement computer lab in Knuth Hall." The Knuth keycard unlocks the lab door. Understand "key" or "card" as the Knuth keycard. Check dropping the Knuth keycard: say "The keycard is important; you're not about to leave it lying around." instead. Before opening the lab door when the lab door is locked: try silently unlocking the lab door with the Knuth keycard; if the lab door is not unlocked, stop the action. Check unlocking the lab door with the Knuth keycard: if the Knuth keycard is unknown broken or the Knuth keycard is known broken begin; say "You stand so that your keycard is adjacent to the scanner, but instead of unlocking the door, it just beeps angrily[if the Knuth keycard is unknown broken]. That's odd. Someone must have disabled your keycard[otherwise] at you[end if]."; now the Knuth keycard is known broken; stop the action; end if. After unlocking the lab door with the Knuth keycard: say "You stand so that your keycard is adjacent to the scanner, and the lock disengages with a loud click."; now the Knuth keycard is known fixed. Instead of going east when the location is the Corridor: say "You enter Lamarr Hall, walk past the Mechanical Engineering labs, and head out the back door. The streets seem deserted, but there's an soft, annoying buzzing sound clawing at the back of your mind from somewhere behind Knuth. It gets softer the further away you get. That seems like as good a reason as any to get away from here as fast as possible; you walk hurriedly to the train station and make your way to the Weishaupt Foundation facility."; change the Slack Attack Rating to sao_outmaneuvered. A woman called the administrator is in Building Administration. "An admin sits behind the counter." The description is "She's sitting across the counter from you, looking bored." Understand "admin" or "woman" as the administrator. Instead of kissing the administrator, say "Ew. No. Not only would that be terribly unprofessional, she's got to be 60 if she's a day." Instead of giving the Knuth keycard to the administrator: deliver the admin_card quip. Instead of showing the Knuth keycard to the administrator: deliver the admin_card quip. After quipping when the current quip is admin_card: if the Knuth keycard is known broken, now the Knuth keycard is unknown fixed. Table of Quip Texts (continued) quip quiptext admin_badask "If she knew anything, you'd be in [bold type]big[roman type] trouble. Best to let sleeping dogs lie." admin_badtell "You really try not to broadcast that." admin_cultists "'Ma'am, I'm being stalked by insane cultists. Do you suppose you could arrange some kind of escort for me?' She looks somewhat scandalized. 'As you well know, it is the policy of this university not to interfere with others' belief systems. Shame on you for trying to oppress them.'" admin_card "[if Knuth keycard is unknown broken]Your card is fine, as far as you know.[end if][if the Knuth keycard is known broken]You hand your keycard to the administrator. 'Could you check the status of this card for me?' 'Certainly, Mr...' -- she locks the keycard into the programmer and hits some keys -- 'Lowell. Hmm. That's odd. For some reason your lab access expired last weekend. Must have typoed when setting it up this semester or something.' She presses some more keys, extracts your keycard, and hands it back to you. 'Should be good as new.' 'Thanks.'[end if][if Knuth keycard is unknown fixed or Knuth keycard is known fixed]It's been reactivated already.[end if]" admin_greeting "'Hi.' 'Hello. May I help you?'" Table of Ask Results (continued) NPC topic result administrator "foundation/weishaupt/conspiracy/scholarship/internship" admin_badask administrator "cultist/cult/cultists/subgeniuses/subgenii/subgenie/subgenies" admin_cultists administrator "key/card/cardkey/keycard" admin_card Table of Tell Results (continued) NPC topic result administrator "foundation/weishaupt/conspiracy/scholarship/internship" admin_badtell administrator "cultist/cult/cultists/subgeniuses/subgenii/subgenie/subgenies" admin_cultists administrator "key/card/cardkey/keycard" admin_card administrator "hello/hi" admin_greeting Chapter 2C - The SubGenius Strikes! A Knuth spot is a kind of value. The Knuth spots are knuth_front, knuth_back, or knuth_both. The cultist location is an Knuth spot that varies. The cultist location is knuth_both. A window is a kind of thing. A window is always fixed in place. The specification of windows is "Represents a window. Windows can be looked through and share a number of other properties." A window called the Front Window is in the Front Lounge. "A sizable picture window overlooks the surrounding area, backlighting anyone sitting on the couches." The description is "[if the cultist location is knuth_back]You check out the window, but don't see anything overtly threatening. Just normal-looking students going about their business[otherwise]There are a fair number of students wandering about the streets. You can see about [end if][if the cultist location is knuth_both]half [end if][if the cultist location is not knuth_back]a dozen students wearing the smiling, pipe-smoking, 50s-style face that the cultists seem to use as a recognition symbol. One of them notices you looking down from the window. All of them scatter[end if]." A window called the Back Window is in the Back Lounge. "A smallish window lets a little light in." The description is "[if the cultist location is knuth_front]You check out the window, but don't see anything overtly threatening. Just normal-looking students going about their business[otherwise]There are a fair number of students wandering about the streets. You can see about [end if][if the cultist location is knuth_both]half [end if][if the cultist location is not knuth_front]a dozen students wearing the smiling, pipe-smoking, 50s-style face that the cultists seem to use as a recognition symbol. One of them notices you looking down from the window. All of them scatter[end if]." Before going east when the location is the Front Lounge, try attacking the Front Window instead. Instead of attacking the Front Window: say "The glass is shatterproof, and there's a pretty good fall to the pavement on the other side, anyway." Check attacking a window (this is the don't break windows rule): say "That would be both unsubtle and hazardous." instead. Instead of opening a window when in Knuth Hall, say "Knuth Hall is climate-controlled, so the windows don't open." Instead of searching a window (called the target), try examining the target. After examining the Front Window when the cultist location is not knuth_back: change the cultist location to knuth_back; the cultists regroup in three turns from now; the cultists spread out in five turns from now. After examining the Back Window when the cultist location is not knuth_front: change the cultist location to knuth_front; the cultists regroup in three turns from now; the cultists spread out in five turns from now. At the time when the cultists regroup: if the cultist location is knuth_back then change the cultist location to knuth_front; otherwise change the cultist location to knuth_back. At the time when the cultists spread out: change the cultist location to knuth_both. To have the SubGenii capture Benj at half strength: say "You push the door open and start working your way towards the tram station. You hear an annoying buzzing sound in the back of your mind. Normally you'd shake this off, especially given your bigger problems at the moment -- the cultists seem to have noticed you. In fact, there's a good half dozen or so closing in on you right now. Throwing stealth to the wind, you break into a run -- or try to. Something in the back of your mind is refusing to let you move. Your vision dims as they approach, no doubt to 'help' you..."; change Benj's status to captured; change the Slack Attack Rating to sao_captured. To have the SubGenii capture Benj at full strength: say "You push the door open and start elbowing your way through the crowd. You hear an annoying buzzing sound in the back of your mind. Normally you'd shake this off, especially given that you seem to have bigger problems at the moment -- there are an awful lot of people here, and they don't seem very friendly. Moving at all is pretty slow going, and your legs keep feeling heavier and heavier. Your vision dims as you fall to your knees, and the bystanders close in, no doubt to 'help' you..."; change Benj's status to captured; change the Slack Attack Rating to sao_captured. To have Benj outwit the SubGenii: say "Stealth is for people who aren't running late, but there's still no need to draw attention to yourself; you shove the door open and hit the street at a brisk walking pace. There aren't that many people here, actually, and you don't see any of the cultists, either. They must all be waiting at the door that they saw you see them scatter from. You smile slightly. They're too clever by half. There's an soft, annoying buzzing sound clawing at the back of your mind from somewhere behind you, but it gets softer the further away you get. That seems like as good a reason as any to break into a dead run away from Knuth Hall. You are swiftly on the train to the Weishaupt Foundation."; change the Slack Attack Rating to sao_outwitted. Instead of going east when the location is Front Door and the cultist location is knuth_both, have the SubGenii capture Benj at half strength. Instead of going west when the location is Back Door and the cultist location is knuth_both, have the SubGenii capture Benj at half strength. Instead of going east when the location is Front Door and the cultist location is knuth_front, have the SubGenii capture Benj at full strength. Instead of going west when the location is Back Door and the cultist location is knuth_back, have the SubGenii capture Benj at full strength. Instead of going east when the location is Front Door and the cultist location is knuth_back, have Benj outwit the SubGenii. Instead of going west when the location is Back Door and the cultist location is knuth_front, have Benj outwit the SubGenii. Part 3 - Janet - The Rivals Chapter 3A - The Ceiling Tile Test Before the Gauntlet is a scene. Before the Gauntlet begins when Slack Attack ends. Section 3A(1) - The Map The Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is south of the hallway door and down from the Crawlspace. The hallway door is south of the Meeting Room. The hallway door is an open, lockable, scenery door. Understand "exit" or "exit door" as the hallway door. The description of the hallway door is "[if the location is the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room]The hallway door to your north leads to the briefing room, which is where you're supposed to be going. It stands invitingly open.[otherwise]That door leads back to the trapped hallways." Instead of opening the hallway door when the location is the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room, say "The door already is open." Before doing anything other than examining, entering, going, listening to, or opening to the hallway door when the location is the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room, say "You'll have to go north first to get to the door." instead. The triple doors are north of the Foyer. The triple doors are undescribed, non-automatic, closed, lockable, and locked doors. The description is "The hall dead-ends at these doors. [description of the nameplates]". Understand "door" or "Hal's/Benj's/Janet's door" as the triple doors. Through the triple doors is the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room. Some nameplates are part of the triple doors. The description is "Each door has one of your names embossed on it in neat type[if quip_2hdoors has been exhausted]. Now that Hal has mentioned it, you can see the seams where the nameplates end and the doors begin[end if]." Understand "name" or "names" as the nameplates. More Crawlspace is east of the Crawlspace and west of Yet More Crawlspace. Index map with the Foyer mapped south of the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room. Crawlspace is concealing. More Crawlspace is concealing. Yet More Crawlspace is concealing. The description of the Foyer is "This is a dead-end hallway somewhere in the depths of the Weishaupt Foundation building. 'You will receive further instructions once you arrive,' according to the receptionist, [if Benj's status is captured]but Benj is nowhere to be found. Hal stands around, tapping his foot impatiently while[otherwise]but you're all here and no orders seem to be forthcoming. Hal taps his foot impatiently while Benj leans against a wall and[end if] you pace. The hall ends at three adjacent doors in the north wall." The Foyer is a vicinity. Section 3A(2) - The Gauntlet A man called Hal is in the Foyer. A man called Benj is in the Foyer. Hal is undescribed. Benj is undescribed. Understand "Harold" and "teammate" as Hal. Understand "Ben", "Benjamin", and "teammate" as Benj. The description of Hal is "He's pretty out of shape, even if you use normal standards instead of yours. Then again, he's had a bit of a paunch for as long as you've known him, and he wears glasses so thick you can barely see his eyes for the distortion, so you imagine your Unknown Benefactors didn't recruit him for his skills as a field agent. He's bright - no denying that - but you still don't really know why they'd be interested in him personally." The description of Benj is "Benj is one of the most nondescript people you've ever met. Plain brown hair, not too messy, not too neat, average height and build, the works. You're much better at sneaking in where you're not supposed to be, but you've never really managed the trick of looking like you belong where you aren't supposed to be. Neither has he, really, but you can easily see him doing it better than you. He seems to be breathing hard, as if he'd just run a race." Instead of attacking Hal, say "Violence is for rivals, not allies." Instead of attacking Benj, say "Violence is for rivals, not allies." Instead of kissing Hal, say "You try to avoid romantic entanglements with coworkers. Besides, he's not really your type." Instead of kissing Benj, say "You try to avoid romantic entanglements with coworkers." Instead of giving or showing the pager to Hal, deliver the quip_2hpager quip. Instead of giving or showing the pager to Benj, deliver the quip_2bpager quip. When Before the Gauntlet begins: pause the game; change the current agent to aJanet; strip the player; now the pager is carried by the player; start chapter "Chapter 3" named "The Rivals"; say "It may be silly and melodramatic, but it [italic type]is[roman type] pretty cool. Anyone can take the bus to this stop. Anyone can walk into this office building. But when they do so, not just anyone finds herself in a room capable of monitoring and controlling a thousand secret operations around the world. You aren't just anyone. Neither are Hal and Benj[if Benj's status is captured]. Where [italic type]is[roman type] Benj, anyway?[otherwise]."; enable Chapter 3A hints; change the default converser to yourself; if Benj's status is captured begin; remove Benj from play; change the down exit of the More Crawlspace to Limbo; end if; move the player to Foyer. Benj's ordeal is a fact that varies. Benj's ordeal is unknown. Hal's essay is a fact that varies. Hal's essay is unknown. After quipping when the current quip is quip_2bhal, the current quip is quip_2bbenj, the current quip is quip_2bbreath, or the current quip is quip_tbwork: change Benj's ordeal to known. After quipping when the current quip is quip_2hhal, change Hal's essay to known. Before quipping when the current quip is quip_2hcult: if Benj's ordeal is unknown, change the current quip to quip_requiresfact. Before quipping when the current quip is quip_2hessay: if Hal's essay is unknown, change the current quip to quip_requiresfact. Before quipping when the current quip is quip_2bcultists: if Benj's ordeal is unknown, change the current quip to quip_requiresfact. Before quipping when the current quip is quip_2bescape: if Benj's ordeal is unknown, change the current quip to quip_requiresfact. Table of Quip Texts (continued) quip quiptext quip_2hhal "'What's new with you?' 'Not a whole lot. I got assigned a history essay the other day, but I'd be surprised if it took me more than five or six hours to go from blank page to finished product.'" quip_2hessay "'What's your essay on?' 'Fairly standard give-the-right-answer-in-five-pages-or-more stuff. I'm supposed to take a position on the extermination of the Native Americans throughout US history. I'm half-tempted to argue in favor of it just for spite.'" quip_2hbenj "[if Benj's status is captured]'Any idea where Benj is?' Hal shrugs. 'No clue[otherwise]You jerk a finger at Benj, who's leaning against the wall and panting. 'What's up with him?' Benj looks up long enough to glare at you. 'I can talk, you know.' Hal smiles. 'I suggest you ask him directly[end if].'" quip_2hjanet "'I'm not late, am I?' 'Nah. [if Benj's status is captured]Benj still hasn't shown[otherwise]We've just been standing here[end if].'" quip_2hfnord "'What brought you into this crew, anyway?' Hal lifts an eyebrow. 'They asked, and I figured that signing on would be my only way to find out what's actually going on out there.'" quip_2hpager "You flip your pager out. 'You ever wonder about these? I mean, it's not like we couldn't carry cell phones or something.' 'Not really.' You meet his gaze - or try to, anyway. His glasses are so thick it's hard to tell exactly where he's looking. 'That's garbage and you know it.' 'Suffice to say I think that's a question we shouldn't be asking.'" quip_2hcult "'Who are these cultists who were after Benj?' 'They're acting like the SubGenii.' Hal straightens up a bit, and starts going into Lecture Mode. 'The Church of the SubGenius was a parody religion back in the late 90s, making fun of televangelists. The basic idea was that the world was going to end on July 4th, 1999, and that only those who had sent them $30 would be spared devastation.' 'We're a good ways into the 21st century by now. Doesn't this hurt recruitment?' 'Well, they've still got a bit of a following, and it's not like anyone was particularly serious about it to begin with.' 'These guys sound pretty serious.' 'Very true. I don't think they're real.'" quip_2hdoors "'Doesn't it strike you as odd that they have three doors here with our names specifically on them?' 'Not really. You can see the gaps around where all our names are. They're just magnetic nameplates.' 'But...' 'So it looks like their standard cell size is three.' 'If you say so.' You don't really see the gaps around the nameplates, but maybe he checked more closely earlier." quip_thself "He basically knows about you already." quip_thfnord "He probably knows more than you do." quip_thwork "'I hope this is over soon. I've got a midterm to study for.' Hal is unimpressed. 'We've all got work. We're also all good at what we do. I'm sure you'll do fine.'" quip_2bhal "[if Benj's ordeal is known]You can't think of anything to ask Benj about Hal that you couldn't just as easily ask Hal directly.[otherwise]You jerk your finger at Hal. 'He managed to make it here without being out of breath. Have you gotten that out of shape? Or did you show up fleeing a mob or something?' Benj is not amused. 'Actually, yes. A group of cultists laid an ambush for me outside of Knuth Hall.' 'I... see. Never mind.'" quip_2bbenj "[if Benj's ordeal is known]'You holding up OK?' 'Well enough, considering[otherwise]'So, how's it going?' 'A group of cultists laid an ambush for me outside of Knuth Hall. I managed to give them the slip, though.' 'Clearly[end if].'" quip_2bjanet "'Do I look OK to you?' 'You're as OK-looking as ever.' 'Wow, no wonder the girls are all over you.'" quip_2bfnord "'How did you get tangled up with this crowd, anyway?' 'I needed the money.'" quip_2bpager "You flip your pager out. 'You ever wonder about these? I mean, it's not like we couldn't carry cell phones or something.' 'I figure cell phones are way too easy to tap or trace. Not that I know what these things do under the hood, anyway.'" quip_2bbreath "'[if Benj's ordeal is known]It's been a few minutes since you ran; haven't you recovered yet?' Just give me a few minutes. I'll be fine[otherwise]You look terrible. Why the panting and gasping?' 'A group of cultists laid an ambush for me outside of Knuth Hall. I managed to give them the slip, though.' 'Clearly[end if].'" quip_2bcultists "'What kind of cultists are we talking about here?' 'They appear to worship someone named 'Bob'. Hal's got them pegged as SubGenii; ask him about it.'" quip_2bdoors "'Doesn't it strike you as odd that they've got a set of doors set up here directly for us?' 'I'm not entirely sure how wealthy and powerful our Glorious Patrons are,' he replies, pronouncing the capital letters." quip_2bescape "'How'd you manage to escape the cultists?' '[if the Slack Attack Rating is sao_outwitted]I let them see me see them run from one door, then took the other one. They'd called reinforcements from there[otherwise]They forgot about the underground corridor to Lamarr Hall from Knuth. I took that[end if].' 'Cunning.' 'Thanks.'" quip_tbwork "[if Benj's ordeal is known]You suspect that given the day he's had, he's not going to be interested in hearing you griping about class.[otherwise]'Man, this is annoying. Our prof has given us two days notice on a midterm and...' Benj cuts you off. 'I just spent the last 30 minutes evading cultists outside my CS class.' 'OK, you win.'" quip_tbfnord "'I can't wait to be a full field agent. I've been hearing rumors about the kinds of toys they get...' Benj waves you off. 'This really isn't the best time.'" Table of Ask Results (continued) NPC topic result Hal "hal/harold/moore/self/himself/class/school" quip_2hhal Hal "benj/benjamin/lowell/ben" quip_2hbenj Hal "janet/o'connor/me" quip_2hjanet Hal "cultists/cult/subgenii/subgenius/church/bob" quip_2hcult Hal "benefactors/benefactor/foundation/weishaupt/conspiracy/scholarship/internship" quip_2hfnord Hal "essay/homework/history/assignment" quip_2hessay Hal "door/doors/names/name/plate/plates" quip_2hdoors Hal "pager" quip_2hpager Benj "hal/harold/moore" quip_2bhal Benj "ben/benj/benjamin/moore/self/himself" quip_2bbenj Benj "janet/o'connor/me" quip_2bjanet Benj "cultists/cult/subgenii/subgenius/church/bob" quip_2bcultists Benj "benefactors/benefactor/foundation/weishaupt/conspiracy/scholarship/internship" quip_2bfnord Benj "pager" quip_2bpager Benj "breath/breathing" quip_2bbreath Benj "door/doors/names/name/plate/plates" quip_2bdoors Benj "ambush/escape" quip_2bescape Table of Tell Results (continued) NPC topic result Hal "janet/o'connor/me" quip_thself Hal "benefactors/benefactor/foundation/weishaupt/conspiracy/scholarship/internship" quip_thfnord Hal "physics/orbital/mechanics/test/midterm/class/school" quip_thwork Benj "benefactors/benefactor/foundation/weishaupt/conspiracy/scholarship/internship" quip_tbfnord Benj "physics/orbital/mechanics/test/midterm/class/school" quip_tbwork Benj "janet/o'connor/me" quip_thself Before waiting in the Foyer: say "You settle in to wait for your orders. "; start the gauntlet; stop the action. To start the gauntlet: say "They aren't long in coming; the north doors swing open and you hear the PA system intone, 'Scholars unit 17E, report individually through the doors before you.' You [if Benj's status is captured]and Hal exchange a brief glance, shrug,[otherwise]all exchange glances[end if] and proceed through your doors[if Benj's status is captured]. Hopefully they'll see fit to tell you what's going on with Benj, too[end if]."; now the white door is open; if Benj's status is OK, Benj gets hit in one turn from now; move the player to the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room. Instead of opening or knocking the triple doors when in the Foyer: say "You should probably wait for instructions first. "; start the gauntlet. Before going when in the Foyer (this is the force gauntlet rule): say "You should probably wait for instructions first. "; start the gauntlet; stop the action. At the time when Benj gets hit: say "Benj shouts in surprise or pain in the next room." The description of the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is "This room is almost a hall; it's maybe ten feet wide and 30 feet long, and the doors are very nearly diagonally opposite one another[if unvisited]. The exit door stands open in the north wall[end if]. It's so aggressively unremarkable that it makes you suspicious. If rooms had eyes, this one's would be shifty." Instead of facing up in the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room: say "[if the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is not trapped]A hole in the acoustic tiles here leads into darkness.[otherwise]You see nothing interesting that way." The Pre-Run Gauntlet is down from More Crawlspace, north of the entrance door, and south of the exit door. "This room is much like the one you entered, but it is littered with shattered ceiling tiles. Closed doors lie to both the north and south." The entrance door is a closed, lockable, locked, scenery automatic door. Understand "hallway door" as the exit door. The exit door is a closed scenery automatic door. Understand "white door" as the entrance door. Through the exit door is the Meeting Room. Through the entrance door is Foyer. The description of the entrance door is "This white door is the one that Benj must have entered through." The description of the exit door is "Since Benj isn't here, you must assume that he eventually worked his way through." Instead of knocking the entrance door, say "That wouldn't help." Instead of knocking the exit door, say "That wouldn't help." Instead of knocking the white door, say "That wouldn't help." Some shattered tiles are in the Pre-Run Gauntlet. The shattered tiles are scenery. The description is "The ground is littered with broken ceiling tiles at all angles." Understand "ceiling tile/tiles" or "fallen ceiling tile/tiles" or "tile" as the shattered tiles. The description of the Crawlspace is "You don't have a lot of room to move here, but the tight space won't slow you down much, either. The crawlspace extends to the east, and there's a hole at the south end of the room where you came in." The description of More Crawlspace is "The crawlspace continues east to west here. [if Benj's status is OK]The 'floor' is littered with gaps. A pair of cables extends from each.[otherwise]Cables extend in pairs from the tiles beneath you and lead off to the west." The description of Yet More Crawlspace is "The crawlspace ends here, and extends out only to the west. [if Benj's status is OK]Uniquely, the floor here is complete and sound. [end if]Cables extend from some panels and lead off to the west." South of the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is the white door. Through the white door is the Foyer. The white door is a scenery lockable unlocked openable open automatic door. Understand "entrance" and "entrance door" as the white door. The description of the white door is "This door leads south, back to the foyer. You need to go north." Through the white door is the Foyer. Instead of going through the white door: say "As you turn towards the door you came in, it slams shut of its own volition and locks with a rather pointed CLICK."; now the white door is closed; now the white door is locked. The Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is either trapped, suspicious, or sprung. The Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is trapped. The fallen tile is a thing. "The ceiling tile lies on the floor, underneath the gap it left when it fell." The description is "An ordinary rectangle of acoustic tile, perhaps six square feet or so.". The printed name is "fallen ceiling tile". Understand "ceiling tile" or "fallen ceiling tile" as the fallen tile. Instead of taking the fallen tile, say "Not only is it useless, it's unwieldy." The gap is a backdrop. It is in the Crawlspace, the Pre-Run Gauntlet, and the More Crawlspace. The description is "A hole in the acoustic tiles here leads into [if in the Pre-Run Gauntlet]darkness.[otherwise]the room below." Understand "hole/gaps" as the gap. Instead of entering the gap: if the location is the Pre-Run Gauntlet then try going up; otherwise try going down. Instead of taking the gap, say "You can't take what isn't there." The hole is scenery. The description is "A hole in the acoustic tiles here leads up into darkness." Instead of entering the hole, try going up. Instead of taking the hole, say "You can't take what isn't there." Understand "gap" as the hole. Instead of going through the hallway door from the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room when the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is trapped: say "You take a couple of steps towards the north door, then catch something out of the corner of your eye. You leap backwards just as one of the ceiling tiles comes crashing to the floor right were you were standing."; now the fallen tile is in the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room; now the hole is in the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room; now the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is suspicious. Instead of going through the hallway door from the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room when the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is suspicious and the gadgetry is switched on: say "You hesitate a moment. The whole room is probably trapped. You're pretty sure you can evade all the traps - especially if they're all as simple as these tiles - but maybe you should investigate the room a little more first."; now the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is sprung. The gadgetry is a device in Yet More Crawlspace. The gadgetry is fixed in place and switched on. "Some kind of device squats here, with wires spreading out from it all over this crawlspace." Understand "device" as the gadgetry. The description is "It's a largish black box. About fifty cables come from it, burying themselves in the ceiling below. Two of those cables appear to connect to the gap off to the west you came in from." Instead of attacking the device, say "You probably shouldn't be going around smashing up your patron's equipment." Some cables are part of the gadgetry. The description is "About fifty cables come out of the gadgetry, burying themselves in the ceiling below and continuing off to the west. Two of them lead to the gap off to the west you came in from." Instead of taking, pulling, turning, or pushing the cables, say "They are firmly attached." Understand "wires" as the cables. Instead of cutting the cables, say "You don't have any appropriate tools." Instead of eating the cables, say "You're only [italic type]metaphorically[roman type] a rat in the walls here." Procedural rule while eating the cables: ignore the carrying requirements rule. Some other cables are a backdrop. The other cables are in the More Crawlspace and the Crawlspace. The description is "Cables lead out of the ceiling off to the east[if the location is More Crawlspace] and west[end if]." Understand "wires" as the other cables. Instead of taking, pulling, turning, or pushing the other cables, say "They are firmly attached." Understand "wires" as the other cables. Instead of cutting the other cables, say "You don't have any appropriate tools." Instead of eating the other cables, say "You're only [italic type]metaphorically[roman type] a rat in the walls here." Procedural rule while eating the other cables: ignore the carrying requirements rule. Understand the command "bite" and "chew" as "eat". Before going through the hallway door from the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room when the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is sprung and the gadgetry is switched on: change the Ceiling Tile Rating to cto_dodged; say "You advance towards the door once again, and again another tile falls loose right above you. It'll take more than a few trapped ceilings to stop you. This time, you dodge forward, and keep moving towards the door as they fall. This is madness; at least one in three tiles is trapped, but you're quick enough that none of them are a threat to you as long as you don't hold still. About halfway across, you notice a tripwire stretched across the hall about five feet from the exit door. That's at least a little clever, you suppose; they must have hoped you'd be watching the ceiling exclusively. You advance just a bit more and then do a diving roll over the tripwire, ending up right in front of the exit door. This triggers one last ceiling tile, of course, but you were expecting this. You snatch it out of the air as you complete the roll, then toss it aside and walk through the door." Before going through the hallway door from the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room when the gadgetry is switched off: change the Ceiling Tile Rating to cto_deactivated; say "With the trap machinery off, the room is much safer to cross now. Not completely safe, though. They left a tripwire about two-thirds of the way down the hall as a trap for the unwary. Easy enough to dodge, especially since you've got all the time in the world to do so. You breeze through the door at the end into the briefing room." Before going north from the Pre-Run Gauntlet: change the Ceiling Tile Rating to cto_outmaneuvered; say "You casually stroll out through Benj's door into the meeting room." Instead of going up from the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room when the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room is trapped: say "You can't go that way." The description of the Meeting Room is "This room is nondescript, but not as aggressively so as the gauntlet you just ran. You see a few chairs gathered around a projector." The Meeting Room is a vicinity. After going to the Meeting Room: now the hallway door is closed; now the hallway door is locked; continue the action. Instead of jumping when the location is the Crawlspace or the location is More Crawlspace or the location is Yet More Crawlspace, say "There isn't remotely enough room." Before the Gauntlet ends when the location is the Suspiciously Unremarkable Room. Chapter 3B - The Briefing Briefing is a scene. Briefing begins when the player is in the Meeting Room and Briefing has not happened. Briefing ends when mission readiness is known. Hal's talent is a fact that varies. Hal's talent is unknown. Mission readiness is a fact that varies. Mission readiness is unknown. A man called Benj is in the Meeting Room. "Benj is here, looking much the worse for wear." The description is "He looks like he's been repeatedly clobbered over the head and then punched in the face. Which, you suppose, he was." The default ask quip of Benj is brief_bunknown. The default tell quip of Benj is brief_bunknown. When Before the Gauntlet begins: if Benj's status is captured, remove Benj from play. A man called Hal is in the Meeting Room. "[if Benj is in the Meeting Room]Hal, on the other hand, is completely unscathed.[otherwise]Hal is somehow already here, waiting for you." The description is "Hal doesn't seem to have had any trouble at all. A good trick, that." A man called Saint is in the Meeting Room. "Your briefing officer, known only to you by his codename 'Saint,' stands behind the lectern." The description is "'Saint' is clearly of East Asian extraction, and you'd guess him to be in his late 30s. His general build implies that he's something of a desk jockey now, but he'd still be more formidable in combat than Hal." After examining Saint for the first time, say "As you understand it, he takes the handle 'Saint' to indicate that he's your liason to Higher Powers." Instead of kissing Saint, say "Not really your type, and besides, that could get you fired." Some chairs are scenery in the Meeting Room. The description is "Four severely functional folding chairs are gathered around the lectern. They do seem to be padded, at least." The chairs are an enterable supporter. The proxy_chair is scenery in the Meeting Room. The description is "One of four severely functional folding chairs gathered around the lectern." The printed name is "chair". Understand "chair" or "seat" as the proxy_chair. The proxy_chair is an enterable supporter. Understand "seats" as the chairs. [So that > TAKE SEAT and > HAVE A SEAT work. A nod is probably due to J. Robinson Wheeler here for his groundbreaking work in "Persistence de la Vision."] Understand "have [something]" as taking when the location is the Meeting Room. Instead of taking the chairs, try entering the proxy_chair. Instead of taking the proxy_chair, try entering the proxy_chair. Instead of entering the chairs, try entering the proxy_chair. Entering vaguely is an action applying to nothing. Report entering vaguely: say "No need." Understand "sit" or "sit down" as entering vaguely. Instead of entering vaguely when the location is the Meeting Room, try entering the proxy_chair. After entering the proxy_chair, say "You sit down." This is the exiting a chair rule: say "You stand up." Procedural rule when the player is on the proxy_chair: Substitute the exiting a chair rule for the standard report exiting rule. A lectern is scenery in the Meeting Room. The description is "It's a simple wooden stand to let briefing officers consult their notes." A projector is scenery in the Meeting Room. The description is "It's mounted to the ceiling, so you can't see much of it, but it looks ordinary enough." Table of Quip Texts (continued) quip quiptext brief_ninja "Saint pockets a PDA of some kind as you come in. 'I see you haven't been neglecting your physical training any. Nice work.'" brief_ninja_1 "You shrug. 'Presumably, in an actual mission, the things flying at me are going to be quite a bit harder to dodge.' 'Well, yes. Hopefully, that won't be necessary for this upcoming mission, though.' He gestures at one the chairs. 'Have a seat and we'll begin.'" brief_ninja_2 "'You [italic type]did[roman type] tell me to kick up my training regimen. I hope this suffices?' 'Quite handily. You should be more than ready for the intermediate-level material now.' Everything so far has been sub-intermediate? That's an interesting thought. Saint continues, gesturing at the chairs. 'That's not relevant for this situation, though. Have a seat and we'll begin.'" brief_deact "Saint pockets a PDA of some kind as you come in. 'Well handled. Of course, your teammate[if Benj's status is OK]s[end if] didn't wait for you, or it would have been nicer still.'" brief_deact_1 "'Presumably, in a real mission, we'd actually be able to communicate.' Saint shrugs. 'Well, yes. In any event, there's something we need you to look into.' He gestures to the chairs by the lectern. 'Have a seat.'" brief_deact_2 "'Scant praise, really. By the time I'd gotten to the controls, they'd already detected me[if Yet More Crawlspace is visited]. You said my teammates didn't take advantage of my work. I saw the ceiling over Hal's room; it was totally intact. He managed to avoid detection entirely.' Saint nods. 'Yes. Yes he did. We'll have more to say about that later[otherwise].' Saint shrugs. 'That's not always avoidable - and when it isn't, you'll be expected to neutralize the effects. Which you managed, in this case[end if].' He gestures at the seats in front of the lectern. 'Have a seat. I didn't only call you here for drills.'" brief_benjdoor "Saint seems to be studying some kind of PDA. He looks up as your door opens, and he raises an eyebrow as he pockets the device. 'Letting someone else do the hard work for you, hm?'" brief_benjdoor_1 "'I'm a definite fan of taking advantage of the mistakes of others.' Saint shrugs. 'Try to keep that for our rivals, if you would. In any event, we've got some work to do; have a seat.' He indicates the chairs in front of the lectern." brief_benjdoor_2 "'By the time I discovered it, it was unquestionably the safest way out.' Saint shrugs. 'That's reasonable enough, I suppose. Actual mission conditions are less likely to be that conveniently cut and dried, of course.' You manage a look that you hope conveys your opinion of the idea that you would need to be told this. He gestures to the chairs in front of the lectern. 'Speaking of which. If you would be so kind as to take a seat, we've got work to do.'" brief_capture "[if the player is on the proxy_chair]Saint nods at you. 'All right, let's begin[otherwise]Saint shrugs. '...or don't. We've got more important things to worry about. Let's get started[end if].' Hal interrupts. 'Shouldn't we wait for Benj to show up?' 'That would rather defeat the point -- one of the reasons you're here is that we've lost contact with him, and think a rival group has captured him. He'd been investigating the students that were nominally part of a SubGenius cult. You may have noticed them on campus lately.' Yes, they're rather hard to miss, even from a distance. 'We think they're the pawns or subjects of one of our rivals, but we don't know which ones. We're also not clear on what they're actually [italic type]doing[roman type]. Your task is twofold: first, you need to rescue him, and second, find out what they're up to and who they're working for.' He turns to Hal. 'Any questions from you?' Hal nods. 'Where exactly are we going and how are we getting there?' 'We're working on figuring out exactly where he is, collecting the data that we can get from his pager. We should have that ready in about fifteen or twenty minutes. Anything else?' 'Just why you're only asking me specifically for questions.' 'Because, unlike Janet, you're going to be spending those fifteen minutes elsewhere.' He turns to look at you. 'You may have noticed that Hal had no difficulty walking through the trapped hallways. [if the gadgetry is switched off]This wasn't because you switched the machinery off, either; he was already out here by the time you turned it off. [end if]This could indicate one of a number of things, and so we intend to narrow down just what that is.' He gestures. 'Hal, if you would be so good as to follow these gentlemen?' Hal heads off, flanked by three men in dark suits. Saint watches them go, then turns back to you. 'Any questions?'" brief_infiltrate "[if the player is on the proxy_chair]Saint nods at you. 'All right, let's begin[otherwise]Saint shrugs. '...or don't. I don't care[end if]. We've had a breakthrough, thanks to Benj. The information he's been giving us about the purported SubGenii cultists has let us work out where they seem to be basing their work.' Benj raises his hand. Saint looks at him. 'Yes?' 'There were an unusually large number of them outside of Skinner Hall today. Will that break any theories?' 'Unlikely -- we've worked out that they're based on the campus itself. You'll need to work out everything more specific than that. We need you to find out who they're working for and what, exactly, they're up to.' Benj makes a face. 'Well, I'll make dandy bait for them, if Janet can tail us afterwards.' You smirk. 'I like that plan.' Saint nods. 'Sounds good to me. Hal, any questions?' 'Not really.' 'Good. Moving on. You others may have noticed that Hal had no difficulty walking through the trapped hallways. [if the gadgetry is switched off]This wasn't because Janet switched the machinery off, either; he was already out here by the time she turned it off. [end if]This could indicate one of a number of things, and so we intend to narrow down just what that is. Hal, if you would be so good as to follow these gentlemen?' Hal heads off, flanked by three men in dark suits. Saint watches them go, then turns to you. 'Any questions?'" brief_noqs "'No further questions.' 'All right then. Nothing to do but wait for Hal to return, then.' He checks his watch and settles in. So do you." brief_qhal "'What exactly are you testing Hal for, here?' 'He might have actual clairvoyance, or just a danger sense even more finely honed than yours. Or, it might be something in between. He'll be taking some standard Rhine tests, and a couple of variant ones.'" brief_qpsi "[if Psi Test is unknown]'Are you testing Hal for psychic powers?' 'Yes and no. We're checking to see what exactly he has. It could conceivably be some form of clairvoyance, but it could easily be any of a dozen other things.'[otherwise]'You don't seriously believe in psychic powers, do you?' 'No. But they'd show up in our tests anyway, and if we somehow get a clairvoyant on our side, we fully intend to exploit this.'" brief_qself "'We're all still just interns. Can you really trust us with something like this?' 'It's a simple infiltrate-and-rescue against other college students. They may have unusual capabilities, but it's not like any of you are mundane either.'" brief_qcult "'What can you tell us about the opposition here?' 'Not a lot. They're taking some symbology from the old gag religion, the Church of the SubGenius, but they're too well-organized and doctrinally uniform to be the real thing. So all we can really see is that they have some very effective indoctrination technique[if Benj's status is OK].' He turns to Benj. 'If you're going to use yourself as bait, don't let yourself be under their control for long.' Benj smiles, perhaps a little grimly. 'I have no intention of that.'[otherwise]. It's extremely important, then, that we get Benjamin out as soon as possible. In fact, it may already be too late.'" brief_qbenj "'[if Benj's status is OK and brief_bceiling has not been exhausted]What exactly did you do to Benj in there?' Saint lifts an eyebrow. 'That would be five ceiling tiles, not to mention the tripwire he missed. He managed to catch himself before hitting the ground face-first, at least[otherwise if Benj's status is not OK and brief_qcult has not been exhausted]What's happening to Benj?' 'It's hard to tell. His captors taking some symbology from the old gag religion, the Church of the SubGenius, but they're too well-organized and doctrinally uniform to be the real thing. So all we can really see is that they have some very effective indoctrination technique. We need to get him out fast[otherwise if Benj's status is not OK]What's happening to Benj?' 'We don't know, but given how good they are at indoctrination, we need to get him out fast[otherwise]Will Benj be OK for the mission?' 'His job is just to get captured. He'll be fine[end if].'" brief_bceiling "'So, Benj, how many times [italic type]did[roman type] you get hit in there?' 'I don't want to talk about it.' Saint lifts an eyebrow. 'Five times, plus he missed the tripwire. He managed to catch himself before hitting the ground face-first, at least.'" brief_qceiling "'What exactly was the purpose of that little stunt back there in the hall?' 'We like to see how our agents will react to unexpected situations. It also brings out unsuspected talents, such as those Hal seems to have demonstrated.'" brief_qpager "'We're not going to be carrying our pagers on this mission, are we? It seems like a risk.' 'No, you won't[if Benj's status is captured]. Of course, Benj had his when he was captured, so it's a little late for that[end if].'" brief_qskinner "'What's the significance of Skinner Hall?' Saint shrugs. 'That's where the Psychology department is based, right? Other than that, no idea.'" brief_bskinner "'What's the significance of Skinner Hall?