		AGE OF HEROES 1.0 DOCUMENTATION
			by Richard Webb
	     
	       Copyright (C) Yggdrisil Software 1996
			   3/1/96
     
			Introduction

      Ancient Greece was an age of heroes. Those who possessed
extraordinary abilities, and were favored by the goddess of fortune,
were able to perform deeds that the bards have sung of ever since. 
You now have the opportunity to join the ranks of the heroes of old.
     
     Age of Heroes is a simple "traveling hero" type game for those
who like mythological worlds. AOH is shareware. To find out what that
means, look at the end of this document, under "Registration information, 
lack of warranty, etc.".

		      Table of Contents

1.0     Starting the game

2.0     Object of the game

3.0     Playing the game

4.0     Commands

5.0     Hints
     
6.0     Registration information, lack of warranty, etc.


1.0                    Starting the game

     To start playing, change to the appropriate directory and
type HEROES.  Once the introduction has finished, press any key
to continue.  You will then see a list of names. Use the arrow
keys to scroll through the list until you find the hero you want
and then press enter.
		     

2.0                     Object of the game

     The object of the game is to accumulate as many legends as possible.
You acquire legends by vanquishing monsters, conquering cities, and making
geographic discoveries. The more legends you acquire, the greater the
honors the gods will bestow on you.

		       
3.0                      Playing the game

3.1   Movement and Time

      Your hero will move across six basic types of terrain: plain,
desert, forest, mountains, sea, and cities. Each type of terrain requires
a certain amount of time for your hero to move across. You should
try to avoid terrain types that take a long time to move through. 
     This is because, unfortunately, you are (and will remain?) mortal.
Since you have a limited amount of time to become famous, you must
achieve your destiny before you become weak and frail.

	  Terrain Type       Weeks to Cross   

	     Plain                 4
	     Desert                4
	     Forest                6                
	     Mountains             8
	     Sea                   2
	     City                  4
	     Special               2

     Use the numeric pad arrow keys to move from place to place. Moving
diagonally takes 50% longer than moving horizontally and vertically. 
Moving with an army takes twice as long as moving without one, so 
moving diagonally with an army takes three times as long as the base
movement shown above.
     Some squares are marked with special terrain symbols. These
squares are treated as sea squares for the purpose of movement. However,    
you need an oracle to enter special terrain.
     Be careful not to fall off the edge of the world!
     
3.2 Oracles and geographic discoveries

      Whenever you enter an special terrain area you receive a legend,  
but you must have an oracle with you to so enter. You receive an oracle 
whenever you enter Delphi. Delphi is represented by a white symbol, 
which is placed at a random location at the beginning of the game.
     You may have no more than one oracle at a time.

3.3  Cities and Armies

      You begin the game accompanied by an army, symbolized by a flag
located in the square you occupy. Armies will also appear in your
square whenever you enter a friendly city. You can only have one army
with you at a time.
     Armies have several uses. Cities can be conquered only if an army
is with you. Some monsters can be defeated only with the aid of an
army. Armies can also cover your retreat if you decide you are overmatched
by an opponent, though using an army in this way is not very heroic.
     Your army will stay with you unless you abandon it in combat, 
move through a desert, suffer a natural disaster, or order the army
disbanded.

3.4 Natural disasters.

     Your armies and ships can be destroyed by natural disasters.
Whenever an army moves through a mountain area, there is a random     
chance that it will be eliminated by the unfavorable conditions. Whenever
you move by sea during the winter, there is also a random chance that 
your ships will be destroyed by a storm. If you want to know what season
it is, look on the screen, just below the place where the name of your hero
is printed. There you will see a colored block, which is green
during spring, yellow during summer, red during autumn, and white
during winter.

3.5 Interactions

     When you encounter another hero or a monster, you must choose
between fighting, outwitting, using magic, and running. The results
of an interaction are determined by evaluating your capabilities in
strength, endurance, intelligence, and speed versus those of your
opponent.
     Fighting depends primarily on strength, and secondarily on
endurance. Either you will die, your opponent will die, or the
fight will end in a draw, in which case you will have to retreat out
of the area.
     Outwitting depends on intelligence. If you outwit your opponent,
you will be allowed to enter your opponent's square. Otherwise, your
opponent will select a course of action that hurts you to the greatest
extent he/she/it/they can.
     Running depends upon speed. If successful, you must retreat out of
the square. If you have an army with you and you run away, the army will
be destroyed and you will lose one legend as a result of your cowardice.
On the other hand, running away when an army is covering your retreat
is always successful.
     Using magic. If you have a magic item (see below) you use it. If
you have an inherent magical capability, you can use that.


4.0                      Commands

4.1  B)uild
     The build command is used to build ships in your square. Building
ships takes one year. You cannot build ships in desert or mountain squares.
     You will automatically receive ships, at no cost in time, whenever
you enter a friendly city.
     Only if you have ships may you move across sea squares.

4.2  (P)ray
     The prayer command allows you to seek the aid of the gods. The
gods will support you, by providing you with a magic item, which    
you may choose from the menu displayed. Prayer takes a minimum of
three years. The more powerful the item, the longer the time needed
to pray for it.
     Magic items can only be used during interactions. After one use,
they are lost. Generally magic items aid you in one or more categories
of strength, speed, intelligence, and endurance, though some magic items
have other effects.
       
      Item            Years                        Effect
     
   Apples of Love       3           Charms a hero or monster of opposite sex
   The Myrmidons        5           Creates army
   Hephaestus' armor    5           Temporarily increases strength
   Sirius the dog       5           Decreases opponent's speed and endurance
   Apollo's Arrows      5           Reduces opponent's effective speed to zero
   Anti-magic Shield    3           Neutralizes opponent's magic
   Advice of the Gods   5           Temporarily increases intelligence
   Zeus' Thunderbolts   8+2         Badly damages opponent 
		
     If you do not use a magic item within ten years it disappears.

4.4  D)isband
     The disband command eliminates any friendly army that may be with
you. The main reason for disbanding an army is to save time when traveling.
Disbanding an army takes no time.

4.5 J)unk
      The junk command gets rid of any magic item you currently own.
As you may only have one magic item at a time, it may be to your
advantage to get rid of the one you are carrying. Junking an item takes
no time.

4.6 W)ait
      The wait command causes four weeks to pass while nothing happens.
A good reason for waiting is if winter has arrived and you want to wait for
better weather before sailing.

4.5  escape
     The escape key is used to retire from the game. Escaping allows
you to avoid the humiliation of being killed in your old age.    


5.0                          Hints

5.1  As you move around the world, look for those area that are rich
in potential legends. Not all areas will be equally useful or
accessible to you. Be especially aware of Delphi's location.

5.2  Conquer at least one city in an area where you are planning to
operate.

5.3  Every hero has his own strengths and weaknesses. Try to take
advantage of your particular talents. For example, Hector makes
a good empire builder, while The Sibyl is better used as an explorer.

5.4  Don't haul armies around with you everywhere. Disband a army if
you are not planning to use it. But remember that armies can be used
to cover your retreat.

5.5  If you are planning a long sea voyage, start in the spring or
early summer. If you do move by sea during the winter, travel along 
coasts where a friendly city is nearby.


6.0         Registration, lack of warranty, etc.         

6.1  Shareware

     This program is shareware.  Shareware has a specific meaning;
you can use this software, but for evaluation purposes only.  You can 
copy this software and give it to anyone you choose so long as the 
program is distributed in its original form with all files intact.  
If you want to keep and use this software after 30 days of its original 
use you must make a registration payment of $3.00 per installation to 
the author or the license to use this software is revoked.

6.2  Registration

     While AGE OF HEROES is complete, you still must register after
the 30 day trial period is over. If you register you can also send away
for, and receive for no additional charge, the extra scenarios:
AMERICAN INDIAN HEROES; NORDIC HEROES. You will also receive a scenario
generator that will allow you to create you own maps, monsters and heroes
so that you can simulate any mythology you like.

     This program may be registered by sending a check or money order
for $3.00 to:

     RICHARD WEBB
     Yggdrisil Software
     2308 Freetown Court # 12-c
     Reston VA, 22091-1765

     Please include your name, address, telephone number. Only 3 1/2 
disks are available. If you want the disk to be sent in a cardboard
container, include another 50 cents for shipping- $3.50 total. I would 
also appreciate any comments or ideas you have about Age of Heroes.

6.3 Lack of Warranty

      YGGDRISIL SOFTWARE gives no warranty of any kind for this program. 
YGGDRISIL SOFTWARE will not be liable for any damages for any reason, 
even if YGGDRISIL SOFTWARE has been advised of the possibility of such 
damages. The person using this software bears all resulting risks. 

