From wmmaci@cs.wm.edu Tue May 13 19:31:59 1997 Date: Sat, 19 Apr 1997 18:10:45 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: ??:1 Ruling: Valid A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Joshua Hall-Bachner said: >---Rule Text--- > >Welcome To ****FRC: The Text Adventure**** > >Limbo >Visible Exits: N > >You are in Limbo, that strange place between Here and There. How did you get >here? You have no idea. All you possess is a paper that says, oddly enough, >"All Rules shall be in the form of at least one command in the FRC text >adventure and the response to the command(s), following chronologically >directly from those of the previous VALID Rule." > >> S > >You can't go that way. > >---End Rule--- > >Well? Whaddaya think? I like the rule idea. This seems like fun and hearkens back to the days of Infocom. Ok. I hope everyone in the audience is somewhat familiar with this sort of game - if not, say so and we can explain. Validity: I see no reason why this would be invalid. Style: Interesting idea, leaves the field open for more rules, and I'm in a good mood today :) +1.5 PS- in my last message I meant to say "despis'd," not "dispos'd." Does anybody know what round this is? I've missed the number. :) seeya -bill #*=--- - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----=*# William Maciejewski wmmaci@cs.wm.edu silly & boring homepage: http://cs.wm.edu/~wmmaci/index.html Computer Science grad @ William and Mary / Grad Asst at VIMS "Sleepless": a new progrock show: 90.7 FM Wmsburg VA Sat 2-4pm Heuristics Inc.: improv-sequenced-electronic-ambient-industrial? #*=--- - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----=*# "Love is thicker than most bodily membranes, but not as sticky." - The Tick From wmmaci@CS.WM.EDU Tue May 13 19:31:59 1997 Date: Sat, 19 Apr 1997 20:34:51 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76.2 Ruling: A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, edg@juno.com said: >After picking yourself up and brushing your clothes to remove the dust >encountered when you wlked headlong into the barrier between the FRC >adventure game and the rest of the computer, you decide wisely that you >must have some idea where you are before you can go anywhere. > >>From now on, you decide that the first thing you will do when entering >a new location is > >LOOK > >--Ed Graham Ruling: I'm assuming here that the second paragraph is the command, ie "From now on...LOOK." (either that or LOOK is the command, or there is no command) Unfortunately, rule 76:1 states that the response to the command must also be in the rule. We have to make this one, sadly, invalid... unless there is another interpretation I'm missing. Try again! Soon! Style: Looking sounds like a good idea to me... +.75 -bill Skipping the .sig file. From wmmaci@cs.wm.edu Tue May 13 19:31:59 1997 Date: Tue, 22 Apr 1997 14:48:56 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76.3 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, edg@juno.com said: > >TURN EAST. > >"Okay" > >>Having had enough of walking into blank walls, you come to the >conclusion that it really would be a good idea to know where you are >first. > >>From now on, you decide that the first thing you will do when entering >a new location is > >LOOK > >You see another blank wall. > >"You see nothing of interest here." > Okay... Informally, we've got FRC commands in caps, replies in normal text. Sounds good. Validity: As promised, we now have a command (two commands!) and the responses to them. Fine. Valid. Style: I already gave you style for most of the above, but it is slightly improved, so +.1 :) -bill From wmmaci@cs.wm.edu Tue May 13 19:31:59 1997 Date: Tue, 22 Apr 1997 14:55:51 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76.4 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Joshua Hall-Bachner said: > >> N > >You plod through the thick mists of Limbo to the north. As you advance, the >mists are thinning, leaving only darkness to the fore. You continue on, >until the darkness is total. You pause a moment to steel your wits. As you >step forward once again, you hear an ear-shattering and your world >turns upside down... > > > >Front of House >Your Score: 0 of 320 points >Visible Exits: In (N), W, E > >There is a mailbox here. > >> OPEN MAILBOX > >The mailbox contains: letter > >> TAKE LETTER. READ IT. > >The letter merely says: > >"Future rules must provide an accurate count of your score, as a game >function, and the third rule following this one, and each third rule after >that, must present an accurate assessment of your inventory, as a game >function." > >> INV > >You are carrying: > >letter > Validity: We've got commands, we've got replies. What we've not got (?) is a LOOK when we went to the front of the house. According to 76:3, "the first thing you will do when entering a new location is LOOK." This says nothing about the means of entering the new location, so I think we have to make this one invalid... argh! Style: This is looking more and more like the games! Let's see how big the dictionary and parser for this thing are. :) Nice, generally. Not sure what the allusion is, though...? +.6 -bill From wmmaci@cs.wm.edu Tue May 13 19:31:59 1997 Date: Wed, 23 Apr 1997 17:21:51 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Ruling 76:5 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, jgoo3855@stu.oru.edu said: >N > >You have escaped from limbo, into open airspace... >You are falling... >falling... >falling... >falling... >You begin to fear the sudden stop that is quickly approaching... >falling... >falling... >You can now make out the vague form of a tree below you... it does not look >soft... >falling... >falling... > >Whew--rubber tree. > >LOOK > >You have landed in a small, empty courtyard surrounded by tall walls. A >rubber tree stands in the middle, but it's branches do not come near the walls >. >Obvious Exits: None (yep, that means your trapped--should have left limbo >through > the not-so-obvious exit down, because there are no >not-so-obvious > exits here... if only the tree weren't rooted to >the ground, you could > use it as a ladder...) > >UPROOT TREE > >Huh? > >CHOP DOWN TREE > >Huh? > >EXTRACT TREE > >Huh? > >ARGH!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!!??!?!?!?!?!? > >Huh? > >HELP > >The FRC text adventure has a unique dictionary function. It begins with >only the HELP command. However each time a command is attempted that is not >in the dictionary, there is a chance that it will be added. Exactly one new >valid command is be added in each valid rule. Current valid commands are: >HELP (original) >N (from the invalid 76:4) >S (76:1) >TURN (76:3) >LOOK (76:2 was invalid, so this is introduced in 76:3) Validity: It follows from the previously valid rule (76:3), and includes both commands and responses. It also has a LOOK command upon entering the new area. Sounds ok to me. I'm a little unsure of the meaning of "Exactly one new valid command is be added" since this isn't really a sentence (a typo, I presume). One may wonder: Does this mean "one new command CAN be added" or "WILL" be added? I'm assuming the latter, since it says EXACTLY one. So then we need to check: Do each of the earlier valid rules add one command? Looking at my notes above, 76:3 adds two, so this doesn't follow. I think this one's invalid, too, ack! Style: The story is amusing thus far. I like the rubber tree idea, and the adaptive dictionary. Minus a little for the abovementioned confusions. Also minus a little for using the wrong spellings of "its" and "you're." :) I do like the frustration evident dealing with words not in the dictionary. Ha ha. That's +.5-.1-.1-.1+1 = +1.2. Okay? Am I being too restrictive and literal? We don't usually have this many invalids... -bill From wmmaci@CS.WM.EDU Tue May 13 19:31:59 1997 Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 16:13:20 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76.6 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, "Luke Vaughn" said: >------BEGIN RULE------ > >>In a fit of perverse boredom, you decide to see how complete this world is. > >LOOT WALL > >This wall is blank. > >>Hmmm... Looks like you've looked at the wall again. You decide that the parse >r >must only evaluate the first three letters of a word at most. Very interesting >. > >-------END RULE----- > >I dread to think of what could possibly force this rule to fail. :) > I think you're right. :) Validity: No new locations and therefore no look necessary. There's a command and a response. Okay: Valid. Style: Amusing. Although there's no that much of a restriction, it IS subtle... from now on, we won't be able to have two valid commands starting with the same three letters. :) I like it. Short. +1.1 -bill From wmmaci@CS.WM.EDU Tue May 13 19:32:08 1997 Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 16:25:52 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Ruling 76:7 Re: > TAKE LOST TREASURES OF INFOCOM II. PLACE IN CD DRIVE. TYPE "TRINITY" A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Joshua Hall-Bachner said: >---begin rule--- > >> N > >You feel woozy as you push northwards, through the fog. It grows ever >thicker until, suddenly, you hear a loud and you find yourself at the... > >Palace Gate >Your Score: 0 of 320 >Visible Exits: N, W, NE > >A tide of perambulators surges north, past your current location. Shaded >glades stretch off in several directions, and there is a hint of color to >the west, marking the edge of a garden. > >> LOOK > >At your feet, there lies an exquisitely decorated piece of British >stationery paper. > >> TAKE PAPER. READ IT. > >The paper reads, "Welcome to the FRC text adventure. If you're familiar with >other text adventures, you'll find this one behaves in pretty much the same >way -- with one notable exception. In this game, you write the commands >*and* the responses. Now, something to keep in mind as you continue on your >journey: 'In all future rules, you must either acquire a new item, or use >one which you already have." > >> INV > >You are carrying: >Scrap of Paper >Stationery > >---end rule--- Whoa, I'm behind... catching up! Validity: Commands/Responses. Check. New location LOOK. Check. Commands 3 letters. Check. Seems fine to me! Valid. Style: I'm not sure what perambulators are, but I like that word. Baby carriages? Hmm... Prose is well-written, moving the game along. You've used the letter device three times, though... +.5 From wmmaci@CS.WM.EDU Tue May 13 19:32:08 1997 Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 16:42:04 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76:8 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, jgoo3855@stu.oru.edu said: >W > >You enter a quiet rock garden that seems to extend far to the west. > >LOOK > >Rock Garden: >Your Score 0 of 320 >Visible Exits: E, W > >As you glance around, you are surprised and the rainbow of colors shown in >the rocks. Every color you've ever seen, and a few you have not, seem to be >present here, with the obvious exception of lavender. Suddenly a large puce >rock begins to quiver, and you hear a booming voice apparently from its >direction. > >"Kind sir Frank," you think it strange that this voice knows your name, >until you remember, your name is not Frank. "We need your help. We are >mere Mineralites, creatures of the earth, and travel for us is a difficult >and grueling process. But it seems our brethren of the lavender order have >disappeared. Please, help us to find our brothers." > >A large pile of rocks of varying shades of green and blue begins to shake, >and a small pebble falls at your feet. A quiet voice whispers... > >"Sir Frank, take me with you. I will be your guide." > >GET PEBBLE > >You get the small pebble. > >Again the pebble speaks. > >"I will be your guide. Each time you enter a new room, you must consult me >as to the presence of my brethern nearby, and what course you should take. >And please, Sir Frank, heed my words when you do." Validity: This seems ok with all previous rules, which I won't list right now. I'm hungry :) Valid. I'm assuming our friend the pebble counts as an item... Style: Neat writing. The conflict is introduced, we have some more characters. I laughed at the Frank comment. That's points :) I wonder why anyone would notice that lavender was absent. Restriction is okay, but not stellar... +1.3. From wmmaci@CS.WM.EDU Tue May 13 19:32:08 1997 Date: Sun, 27 Apr 1997 20:08:42 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76:9 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, "Steven Swiniarski" said: >I hope this isn't overlong :) Probably not. Hmm. > >begin--------- > >>SAVE > >0 of 5 games saved. ># of game to save? > >>1 > >Saving game 1. . . >1 of 5 games saved. (good work, now if you die you can start >from here rather than all the way back in limbo.) > >>TALK PEBBLE > >You talk to the pebble about your situation. >The pebble tells you, "I've told you all I can about this place." > >>W, LOOK, TALK PEBBLE > >You enter the far western edge of the rock garden. >You hear music. > >West Rock Garden: >Your Score 1 of 320 >Visible Exits: N,S,D > >A grand vista has opened up before you as the rock garden >ends at a set of bluffs hundreds of feet high. The ground >below the bluffs is shrouded in mists from a waterfall fed by >a silvery river to your south. To the north you see the edge >of a dark wood that borders the edge of the rock garden all >the way to the edge of the bluff. Just over the edge of the >bluff, you see a weak looking ledge. > >You hear music. > >The pebble tells you, "My more polished brethren reside at the >foot of the falls. I would like to consult with them, but >I see no safe way for you to get there. Perhaps if you find >a rope?" > >D, LOOK, TALK PEBBLE > >You step out on the ledge. You have a wonderful panoramic view >of the valley as the ledge gives way under your weight. The last >thing you see is the rainbow arching above the falls-- right before >you smash into the rocks. > >You talk to the pebble about your situation. >The pebble tells you, "That was stupid." > >You are dead. >(When you have died your only option is to load a > previously saved game. You should save the game > every time you do something risky, pick up > an important item, or after you increase your > score.) > >Load saved game (Y/N)? > >>Y > >Load game #? > >>1 > >Game 1 Loading. . . > >Rock Garden: >Your Score 0 of 320 >Visible Exits: E, W > >>INV > >You are carrying: >Scrap of Paper >Stationery >Pebble > Validity: I thought we'd lose it on the "get a new item" but I think talking to the pebble counts as using it. I think this is ok with all valid rules. Valid. Style: Here is a small interesting point. In the rule, the restriction states "you should save the game..." Since it doesn't say "you must save the game" it's not a tight restriction. Excepting that, I like the writing and the introduction of the all-too-familiar save games, which I need in abundance. :) I'll make it a +.9... I'm back - sorry about the absence. I had a job interview on Fri, then took a day off. This week I should be able to respond to new rules in mere minutes :) -bill From wmmaci@CS.WM.EDU Tue May 13 19:32:08 1997 Date: Sun, 27 Apr 1997 20:17:47 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76.10 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, "Ed Murphy" said: >You decide that taking the pebble's advice is a Good Idea after all. > >>W, LOOK, TALK PEBBLE > >You enter the far western edge of the rock garden. >You hear music. > >West Rock Garden: >Your Score 1 of 320 >Visible Exits: N,S,D > >A grand vista has opened up before you as the rock garden >ends at a set of bluffs hundreds of feet high. The ground >below the bluffs is shrouded in mists from a waterfall fed by >a silvery river to your south. To the north you see the edge >of a dark wood that borders the edge of the rock garden all >the way to the edge of the bluff. Just over the edge of the >bluff, you see a weak looking ledge. > >You hear music. > >The pebble tells you, "My more polished brethren reside at the >foot of the falls. I would like to consult with them, but >I see no safe way for you to get there. Perhaps if you find >a rope?" > >>SEARCH > >You spot a dried vine growing out of a firm patch of ground. > >>GET VINE > >Okay, you're holding one end of the vine. It's rather long, actually. > >>INV > >You are carrying: >Scrap of Paper >Stationery >Pebble >End of vine > >>D,LOOK,TALK PEBBLE > >You climb down the vine. > >Bottom of Waterfall: >Your Score 1 of 320 >Visible Exits: U > >The water cascades over the rocks, which over the course of time has smoothed >them out. > >The pebble mutters in a low tone of voice to the smoothed-out rocks. Finally >it speaks to you, "They have no new information. Go back up." > >>U,LOOK,TALK PEBBLE > >You return to the far western edge of the rock garden. >You hear music. > >West Rock Garden: >Your Score 1 of 320 >Visible Exits: N,S,D > >A grand vista has opened up before you as the rock garden >ends at a set of bluffs hundreds of feet high. The ground >below the bluffs is shrouded in mists from a waterfall fed by >a silvery river to your south. To the north you see the edge >of a dark wood that borders the edge of the rock garden all >the way to the edge of the bluff. Just over the edge of the >bluff, you see a weak looking ledge. > >You hear music. > >The pebble tells you, "I've told you all I can about this place." > By the way, to save you some trouble: I read "new location" in Rule 76:2 to mean new, in the sense that you haven't been there before. It's not necessary to repeat the LOOK every time you go back to a place you've already been. Now back to our regularly scheduled program: Validity: Again, it looks fine to me. Looking, talking, new items, all that stuff. Valid. Style: Here we also have a rule with no new restrictions. It also doesn't add that much to the story, so I'll give it a +.3. Keep up the good work, though! -bill From wmmaci@cs.wm.edu Tue May 13 19:32:08 1997 Date: Sun, 27 Apr 1997 20:33:10 -0400 From: "William M. Maciejewski" To: frc@troll.no Subject: Re: 76.11 A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Don Blaheta said: >>>>>> > >>WAIT > >You stand around for a few minutes. > >You hear music getting louder. > >>LISTEN MUSIC > >It's a rather jolly tune, reminiscent of some of those folksy ditties >you heard at that last faire. You close your eyes to enjoy it a moment, >but realize you have other things to do, so you end your reverie. > >The music gets louder. > >>X ME > >You? Well, as adventurers go, you're pretty normal: average height, >medium build. You're wearing the loose billowy shirt, tight breeches, >tall boots, and great cloak that seem to stereotype the genre. From >your own perspective you can't tell the colour of your own eyes or hair, >but then that's probably fairly irrelevant anyway. > >The music gets louder, and a giant hoves into view. He seems to be >playing a lute. > >>X GIANT > >Not much of a giant, actually, only a foot or so taller than you. >However, the "Giant's Guild" emblem on his tunic sort of tipped you off. > >"What you doeeeng een my rock gaaaarden?" demands the giant. > >>ASK PEBBLE ABOUT GIANTS > >The pebble whimpers and hides in a fold of your clothing. > >"Weeeeell?" > >>GIANT, WHAT ABOUT THE LAVENDER > >The giant lets out a roar of rage and slams the lute into the side of >your head. Unfortunately, though small the giant packs rather a lot of >force, and your spinal cord is cleanly severed. > > * * * YOU HAVE DIED * * * >Restart, restore, or quit? > >>RESTORE > >Which game? > >>2^H1 > >Restoring game 2... This game is older than game 1! Proceed? > >>YEAH, SURE > >Restoring game 2... > >West Rock Garden: >Your Score 5 of 320 >Visible Exits: N,S,D > >>LOOK > >A grand vista has opened up before you as the rock garden >ends at a set of bluffs hundreds of feet high. The ground >below the bluffs is shrouded in mists from a waterfall fed by >a silvery river to your south. To the north you see the edge >of a dark wood that borders the edge of the rock garden all >the way to the edge of the bluff. Just over the edge of the >bluff, you see a weak looking ledge. > >At your feet is the mini-giant Edwin, dead. There is a lute string >wrapped around his neck. > >>TAKE STRING.SEARCH EDWIN >Taken. > >Giant guild emblem: Taken. >Secret society token: Taken. >Half-eaten sandwich: Taken. > >>X TOKEN > >It is just a chip of wood with a strange glyph on it, which is painted >lavender. > >The pebble seems to be getting excited. > >>TALK PEBBLE > >"Don't you see? Don't you see?! This giant was part of the conspiracy >against our lavender brethren! You must go into the forest to find >where he came from. There will you find the heart of the matter!" > >>N > >It is pitch dark. You are likely to be eaten by a grue. > >>>>>> > Validity: Since you didn't do anything upon entering the dark area, the next commands must be LOOK, but this is okay for now. I do see that there may be another problem in the future, but for now that's okay too (and I'm not telling you what that is!) Got new items. Okay: Valid. Style: Interesting method of getting yourself out of trouble. Cause an error in the game? Interesting, very interesting. Sure... Continuing the trend of less restrictive rules, we have only the fact that we need to enter the woods. Which I guess we've done. Extra for the escaping trouble thing. +1.0 -bill From wmmaci@vims.edu Tue May 13 19:32:08 1997 Date: Fri, 9 May 1997 09:20:39 -0400 From: William Maciejewski To: frc@troll.no Subject: End of Round 76 Hi all, It looks like the proposal has its problems, and in any case our news from England comes too late. It's sad that rounds end, but after all, they must be ending for some reason. So here we go - this is the official announcement of the end of Round 76. Don Blaheta is the winner and Judge for 77, and Joshua Hall-Bachner is our Wizard with 2.6 Style Points, only a hair above John Goodman. Here's the scoring summary: FRC Round 76 Summary: The Text Adventure Eligible Players: Last Until Style Time Joshua Hall-Bachner 76:7 xxxxxxxxxxx +2.6 6 days Ed Graham 76:3 xxxxxxxxxxx + .85 6 days John Goodman 76:8 xxxxxxxxxxx +2.5 6 days Luke Vaughn 76:6 xxxxxxxxxxx +1.1 7 days Steven Swiniarski 76:9 xxxxxxxxxxx + .9 7 days Ed Murphy 76:10 xxxxxxxxxxx + .3 7 days Don Blaheta 76:11 xxxxxxxxxxx +1.0 7 days All other players NULL xxxxxxxxxxx 0 Rule Summary: Style 76:1 Valid +1.5 76:2 Invalid + .75 76:3 Valid + .1 76:4 Invalid + .6 76:5 Invalid +1.2 76:6 Valid +1.1 76:7 Valid + .5 76:8 Valid +1.3 76:9 Valid + .9 76:10 Valid + .3 76:11 Valid +1.0 Full round summary to follow. -bill #*=--- - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----=*# William Maciejewski wmmaci@cs.wm.edu silly & boring homepage: http://cs.wm.edu/~wmmaci/index.html Computer Science grad @ William and Mary / Grad Asst at VIMS "Sleepless": a new progrock show: 90.7 FM Wmsburg VA Sat 2-4pm Heuristics Inc.: improv-sequenced-electronic-ambient-industrial? #*=--- - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----=*# "Love is thicker than most bodily membranes, but not as sticky." - The Tick From oerjan@nvg.ntnu.no Tue May 13 20:56:19 1997 Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 19:59:10 +0200 (MET DST) From: Orjan Johansen To: Fantasy Rules Committee Subject: Re: round 76, last time On Tue, 13 May 1997, William Maciejewski wrote: > Hi all, > I was about to post a full Round 76 summary but then I realized that > there already is one on the web site. Good job and thanks to our web > maintainer :) ...save mne some work! You mean ftp site, Stein doesn't seem to have updated the web page proper since Round 74. I always try to keep a file (frc/current) of the Judge's announcements reasonably up to date, but recently it has been rare that the Judge's posts contain all the necessary information and can be just concatenated to create a full summary. So you've done a good job as well. I just added your final status update instead of the temporary one. There is just one more thing I would like to have in the Round 76 file and that is the result of the Proposal. I think I have saved all the votes, but if anyone sees their name missing... **** Proposal 76:A (Don Blaheta) The following paragraph is appended to RO 4 At any time before the beginning of the next round, the Judge of a round may extend everyone's eligibility period by the same amount. If an ineligible player's eligibility is extended, then the extension is figured from the time e became ineligible, not the current time. FOR: Andre Engels, Chuck Carroll, Don Blaheta, John Goodman, Steven Swiniarski, William Maciejewski AGAINST: Bruce Jones, Jeremy D Selengut, Jesse Welton, Stephen Turner The Proposal failed 6-4. **** Greetings, Ørjan. -- "The original question was asked by someone who is 8, or at least may have been 8 when this thread started." -- Douglas J. Zare, in sci.math