=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-===-=-=-=-=-= = TROLLS AND TRIBULATIONS = = ----------------------- = = Docs by = = -= The Topper =- = =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= INTRODUCTION: Ancient treasures are hidden inside the caverns! The trolls have set out on an expedition through the dark dungeons, perilous peaks, and rising waters to retrieve the valued relics. But watch out! These treacherous mazes are inhabited by troll-crunching cretins, hungry buzzards, ghastly skulls and sinister spiders, all intent on keeping the treasures within the walls of their wicked world. OBJECTIVE: Your job is to lead the trolls through the many underground mazes and recover the treasures that have been hidden there for centuries. Your success will depend on your skill in combatting the cretins and the wisdom with which you choose your path. You start the game with six trolls, but be careful; there are skulls and spiders lurking behind the cavern walls. They could end your expedition at any time. CONTROL OF MOVEMENTS: Fire button: Activates each troll when it first enters the maze. Once in action, pressing the fire button lets you jump in the direction you are facing. Joystick: Pull towards you (south) to fire. (Also to reload bullets.) Push forward (north) to jump straight up. Right and left movement lets you move in either direction. FUNCTIONS: Ctrl R ... Restarts the game. Ctrl S ... Turns sound on or off. Esc ... Pause. PLAYING THE GAME: You will begin the game with six trolls. The number of trolls remaining is indicated by the troll heads located in the top left hand corner of the screen, just below the score. In many (but not all) mazes, the first task you must accomplish is to shoot down eight cretins. The number remaining is displayed at the top center portion of your screen. After a cretin is shot, it will turn into an egg. You must then run and knock the egg off the plank and into the water before it can rehatch. Each troll is equipped with a gun and eight bullets. If you use up all eight bullets before destroying eight cretins, you must return to the plank with the moving vertical black lines in the center of the screen. Pull the joystick down and your gun will be reloaded. After eight cretins have been destroyed, you can pass through the doors that lead to the maze with the hidden treasures. As you encounter more difficult mazes, the cretins will be accompanied by low-flying buzzards and bouncing skulls. These hazardous obstacles cannot be shot; you must jump over them by facing the enemy and pressing the fire button. Once inside the treasure maze, you will occasionally have your way obstructed by a blue door. These doors can be opened with the keys that are hidden in the maze along with the treasures. The Master door located at the end of each maze does not require a key for passage. There are trampolines located throughout the mazes. Use the trampolines to increase your troll's jump and reach high ledges of the mazes. Each time a troll dies, the next troll starts the expedition from the beginning of the maze in process. You will lose a troll each time you run into a cretin, get smashed by a bouncing skull, sit on a poisonous spider, get snatched up by a hungry buzzard, or fall into the water. When all six trolls have lost their lives, the game is over. Press the fire button to return to beginning screen and play again. SCORING: Points can be collected many ways while traveling through the mazes. Destroying cretins, recovering hidden treasure, and opening doors and maser doors will all increase your score. Once a cretin has been shot, you must run and knock the egg into the water. If the egg remains on the plank, within seconds the egg will hatch and you will not receive any points. The points awarded for destroying cretins depends on which plank you are shooting from. The bottom plank is worth 100 points per cretin and points double each time the troll climbs up to the next plank. Red cretins are worth 900 points and do not have to be knocked into the water. The treasures that you will search for increase in value as you travel deeper into the maze. However, if a troll dies during the excursion and is replaced by a new troll, the points awarded for recovered treasures start over at 100 points and continue to increase until a new maze is entered. Each time you open a blue door, you will receive 100 points. (Remember that you must pick up the key before going through the door.) There are also points scored for reaching the master doors located at the end of each maze. Points are awarded at random for finishing the maze, ranging from 100 to 900. If you received over 10,000 points, the High Score! screen will appear after the game is over. Use the joystick to change the letters and press the fire button when the correct letter appears. (Due to memory constraints, this high score is not written to disk.) Then press the fire button to begin again. SPECIAL NOTE: As you get better and reach the more advanced levels, you'll get into mazes in which keys or prizes appear to be impossible to attain without sacrificing a troll. This is never the case; all treasures and keys can be collected with very careful manipulation of your troll. HINT: Watch the self-running demo for one such maneuver on the trampoline!