|
Start of Chapter 7: Other Characters |
|
Back to §7.2. Liveliness |
|
Onward to §7.4. Barter and Exchange |
Inform 7 Home Page / Documentation
§7.3. Reactive Characters
As we observe characters, so they observe us. Those who seem to have no awareness of what the player is doing often come across more like waxworks than like people. Zodiac demonstrates a scenario where the watchful presence of a dangerous criminal keeps the player from doing what he otherwise might, while Police State expands on this idea with a policeman who reacts to entire types of behavior in his presence, regardless of whether the culprit is the player or a third party. Noisemaking has a crow who will fly away in response to any loud noises the player makes.
And, of course, we definitely want to have characters react to being looked at or otherwise interfered with. Search and Seizure implements a smuggler who reacts when we try to confiscate his possessions. Pine 1 gives us a sleeping princess who can be woken by a variety of methods.
We wrap up this section with two complete puzzle scenarios that demonstrate what can be achieved by giving characters reactions to the player's behavior. A Day For Fresh Sushi has a fish who watches the player's actions and comments on them, while the live furnishings in Revenge of the Fussy Table instead comment every turn on the current state of the world, until the player has successfully sorted out all their complaints.
|
|
Notice that the following two scenarios do not have the same effect:
The Secluded Alley is a room. The Capricorn Killer is a man in the Secluded Alley.
Instead of doing something other than examining with the Capricorn Killer:
say "You wouldn't dare!"
...will prevent the player from doing anything else to the killer, but allow him free range of action with other objects. By contrast, the following will prevent him doing anything other than examining to any item:
The Secluded Alley is a room. The Capricorn Killer is a man in the Secluded Alley.
Instead of doing something other than examining with something in the presence of the Capricorn Killer:
say "You dare not attempt it!"
But notice that because we specified "with something", actions that take no object (like sing) are still not affected.
The most strict statement would be
The Secluded Alley is a room. The Capricorn Killer is a man in the Secluded Alley.
Instead of doing something other than looking or examining in the presence of the Capricorn Killer:
say "You dare not attempt it!"
Because we left "something" out, now the pattern does not have to match an activity with an object; it will match any activity at all. Singing too will be deemed too risky in the presence of our sinister foe. But we do need to make an exception for "look", or else we won't get even the room description.
|
|
Because scene rules are checked every turn, they can be useful for designing puzzles which have multiple solutions. Instead of deciding the puzzle is "solved" when the player does a certain action, we set up a scene that checks to see whether the player has achieved a certain outcome -- however he accomplished it.
For instance, in this scenario, we're waiting for Sleeping Beauty to wake up, and it doesn't much matter how...
A person can be asleep or awake. A person can be active or passive.
The Spinning Tower is a room. "A remote corner of the old castle, reserved for spinning and weaving tasks."
Sleeping Beauty is an asleep woman in the Spinning Tower. "[if asleep]Sleeping Beauty lies here, oblivious to your presence[otherwise]Sleeping Beauty stands beside you, looking a little confused[end if]." The description is "She is even more magnificent than the rumors suggested." Understand "woman" or "girl" or "princess" or "lady" as Sleeping Beauty.
Discovery is a scene. Discovery begins when play begins. Discovery ends when Sleeping Beauty is awake. Marriage Proposal is a scene. Marriage Proposal begins when Discovery ends.
When Discovery ends: say "Throughout the palace you can hear the other sounds of stirring and movement as the spell of centuries is broken."
Instead of attacking an asleep person:
now the noun is awake;
say "[The noun] sits bolt upright. 'Hey! Ow!' So much for that true love's kiss nonsense."
Instead of kissing an asleep person:
now the noun is awake;
say "[The noun] slowly stirs to wakefulness!"
Instead of throwing water at an asleep person:
now the second noun is awake;
now the noun is nowhere;
say "You pour out [the noun] on [the second noun].
[The second noun] wakes, shuddering. 'Agh! I had a terrible dream about drowning and then-- Hey!'"
The player carries a jug of water. Understand "pour [something] on [something]" or "splash [something] at/on [something]" as throwing it at.
Test me with "x beauty / wake beauty / pour water on beauty".
|
|
Seventh Avenue is a room. "The bars are all closed now, and there aren't any good clubs to go to, so you're on your own for open-air entertainment."
Persuasion rule for asking the policeman to try doing something: persuasion fails.
Persuasion rule for asking someone to try doing something: persuasion succeeds.
Note that the policeman will never get to the second persuasion rule, so he will always refuse to do the player's nefarious bidding.
Charles, Thomas, and Larry are men in Seventh Avenue. Patricia is a woman in Seventh Avenue.
And here's an unnecessary aesthetic touch from a later chapter, which will round up the descriptions of your friends into a single paragraph:
Rule for writing a paragraph about someone who is not the policeman:
let X be the number of visible people who are not the policeman;
say "It's just [X in words] of you now: [a list of visible people who are not the policeman]. But it sure has been a rip-roaring evening."
The policeman is a man in Seventh Avenue. "A policeman with a very guarded expression is watching you."
Singing is an action applying to nothing. Understand "sing" as singing.
Report singing:
say "A little the worse for wear, you sing."
Smelling a person is disorderly conduct. Tasting a person is disorderly conduct. Jumping is disorderly conduct. Singing is disorderly conduct.
Instead of someone trying disorderly conduct in the presence of the policeman:
say "The policeman arrests [the person asked]!";
now the person asked is nowhere;
the rule succeeds.
Instead of disorderly conduct in the presence of the policeman:
end the story saying "The policeman arrests you!"
Test me with "charles, look / charles, jump / look / policeman, sing / thomas, taste policeman / patricia, sing / look / jump".
Notice the difference between the two rules about disorderly conduct: the one for other people says 'the rule succeeds' to make sure that the action is counted as a success and not (as normally happens with instead rules) a failure. Most of the time we don't care whether actions are judged successes or failures, but it matters here, because if we type CHARLES, JUMP and the result fails, then text such as 'Charles is unable to.' will be printed - which would get in the way. So we declare the action a success.
|
|
Suppose we want a character who carries hidden objects, but only while he is wearing his jacket. If we deprive him of this, his other possessions become known. Furthermore, if we ever search him, his possessions also become known, and can thereafter be mentioned by us.
Size is a kind of value. The sizes are small, medium, and large. A thing has a size. A thing is usually small.
A thing can be licit or contraband. A thing is usually licit.
A thing can be discovered or secret. A thing is usually secret.
Now, we want the character to be able to hide small things if he has some sort of concealing garment on. We also want to be able to see anything that the player has already found once, perhaps by using the >SEARCH PERSON command. So:
Rule for deciding the concealed possessions of someone (called the suspect):
if the particular possession is discovered, no;
if the suspect wears something and the particular possession is small, yes;
otherwise no.
The following rule, borrowed from a later chapter, assures that any items that are ever mentioned to the player will be treated as known from then on:
Before printing the name of something (called discovery): now the discovery is discovered.
The Customs House is a room. The smuggler is a man in the Customs House. The smuggler wears a leather jacket. He carries a bottle of Altairan rum, some raspberries, and a laser pistol. The pistol is large. The jacket is large. The rum and the raspberries are contraband. The description of the smuggler is "He has a bestubbled chin and a sinister eye."
The tourist is a woman in the customs house. The description is "The type who walks off home with a dozen contraband items in her pocket not because she means to steal things but because she's too stupid to understand that the law applies to herself." She wears a tight-fitting dress. The dress is large. The tourist carries a grapevine and an archaeological artifact. The grapevine is large and contraband. The artifact is contraband.
Report examining someone: say "[The noun] is [if the noun is wearing something]wearing [a list of unconcealed things worn by the noun] and [end if]carrying [a list of unconcealed things carried by the noun]."
Report examining someone who is concealing something contraband:
say "[The noun] looks nervous. You can just tell."
Report examining someone who is carrying an unconcealed contraband thing:
say "Your eye goes at once to [the list of unconcealed contraband things carried by the noun] which [the noun] is unable to hide";
if an unconcealed licit thing is had by the noun, say ", though [if the noun is female]s[end if]he also has [a list of unconcealed licit things had by the noun]";
say "." instead.
Notice that we can talk about what the smuggler wears, what he carries, and what he "has": things the smuggler has can be either worn or carried, so the phrase is useful if we don't care to make that distinction.
Instead of searching someone:
say "[The noun] is revealed to be carrying [a list of things carried by the noun]."
Instead of confiscating the dress:
say "You are not allowed to perform strip-searches in the public customs area."
Check confiscating:
unless the noun is had by someone who is not the player:
say "You can only confiscate other people's possessions." instead.
Carry out confiscating:
now the noun is carried by the player.
Report confiscating:
say "Through the authority vested in you by the power of the Sovereign of Centauri Proxima, you make [the noun] your own."
Test me with "x smuggler / search smuggler / x smuggler / confiscate jacket / x smuggler / confiscate rum / confiscate pistol / x smuggler / confiscate raspberries / x smuggler".
Test more with "x tourist / confiscate dress / confiscate grapevine / x tourist / search tourist / confiscate artifact / x tourist".
|
|
Suppose the current sequence of action handling is not quite enough for us: we'd also like to have a stage after reporting, where other characters can react to the player character's behavior after it has already happened and been reported on screen. Having such a stage is unlike using "after", because after occurs before reports and prevents them from being printed. So, for instance, we could allow the player to do any of a range of different actions that make loud noises, and have a nervous bird that reacts to all of them by flying away afterward.
To do this, we can add a new rule into the specific action-processing rules. (For a list of these, see the Rules index.) Moving rules around and adding new ones requires syntax that we will learn in the chapter on Rulebooks, but the present example is fairly straightforward:
The other-player response rule is listed after the report stage rule in the specific action-processing rules.
This is the other-player response rule:
follow the observation rules.
Country Lane is a room. West of Country Lane is Outside the Farmhouse. East of Country Lane is Village Center. North of Country Lane is Open Field.
Singing is an action applying to nothing. Understand "sing" as singing.
An observation rule for loud action in the presence of the black crow:
let N be a random adjacent room;
if N is a room, move the black crow to N;
say "The crow, startled, flies off to [N]."
|
|
This example does include a number of features that we haven't met yet, particularly rulebooks. Nonetheless, the basic idea should be relatively clear. Our premise is that the player is faced with a series of disgruntled furnishings, none of which want to be responsible for supporting the cold, hot, drippy, or spiky objects lying around the room.
The Dining Room is a room. "A room of handsome proportions, with an octagonal dining table on a fine parquet floor. The original set of chairs has been taken away, leaving only a red velvet dining chair and a blue suede armchair."
The fussy table is a supporter in the Dining Room. It is scenery. The description is "It's hypochondriac: the result of a sojourn in a superior antique shop, where it picked up the scent of almond oil, words like provenance, and a secretive shame about being resurfaced.
In its mellowest moods, after a really good dusting, it will mention, casually, a cabinet it once knew, which was twelve feet tall, came from the Winter Palace, and had an asking price of $350K."
A chair is a kind of supporter with carrying capacity 1. A chair is enterable. A chair is usually scenery. Understand "chair" as a chair.
The blue suede armchair and the red velvet dining chair are chairs in the Dining Room. The description of the blue suede is "Quiet, mellow, and with a lingering aroma of clove cigarettes, and possibly something less legal. It doesn't sit up straight, and doesn't let anyone else do so either." The red velvet has the description "In temperament, in bearing, in everything it is the opposite of the blue suede chair. It is concerned for its duty all the time, has a rigidly straight back, and pokes diners in the spine when it suspects them of overdoing things."
Heat is a kind of value. The heats are luke-warm, cold, and scalding. Everything has a heat. Understand the heat property as describing a thing.
A thing can be spiky or smooth. The cleated left shoe is a wearable spiky thing. It is worn by the player. The cleated right shoe is a wearable spiky thing. It is worn.
Definition: a thing is unpleasant if it is scalding or it is cold or it is spiky or it is drippy.
Definition: a chair is concerned if something unpleasant is on it.
Definition: the table is concerned if something drippy is on it or something scalding is on it or something spiky is on it.
Definition: the ceramic tile is concerned if something spiky is on it.
Definition: a room is concerned if something drippy is in it or something scalding is in it or something spiky is in it or someone which is in it is wearing a spiky thing.
Before printing the name of a drippy thing: say "drippy ". Before printing the name of a cold thing: say "cold ". Before printing the name of a scalding thing: say "scalding ".
After putting a cold thing on a scalding thing:
say "[The noun] meets [the second noun]; both shriek in pain. But the necessary heat transfer occurs.";
now the heat of the noun is luke-warm;
now the heat of the second noun is luke-warm.
After putting a scalding thing on a cold thing:
say "[The noun] meets [the second noun]; both shriek in pain. But the necessary heat transfer occurs.";
now the heat of the noun is luke-warm;
now the heat of the second noun is luke-warm.
After taking a scalding thing:
say "'Right,' you say. 'I'll just hold onto [the noun], shall I? Because that won't be in the least uncomfortable for me.'"
After taking a drippy thing:
say "With a sense of martyrdom, you retrieve [the noun], which dribbles water down your cuffs."
After entering a chair when the player is wearing a spiky thing (called the clog):
say "You sit on [the noun], lifting [the list of spiky things worn by the player] so that the parquet is no longer affronted."
A complaint rule:
if something (called the offending item) on the table is drippy:
say "'Help! Get me a coaster!' screams the table[if the table is visible], its veneer squirming under [the offending item][otherwise] from the Dining Room[end if].";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) on the red chair is drippy:
say "'Oh dear,' murmurs the red chair, as [the offending item] drips into its velvety seat. 'Oh dear, I will have a damp spot. This is so very -- what will people think?'";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) on the visible armchair is drippy:
say "[The offending item] visibly begins degrading the suede where it sits. The armchair is tactfully silent.";
rule succeeds;
if a drippy thing (called the offending item) is in the location and the player is in the Dining Room:
say "'Cripes,' says the parquet. 'No one mind me at all. Just leave that [offending item] right here. You know I'm the most valuable thing in the room?'";
rule succeeds.
A complaint rule:
if a cold dry thing (called the offending item) is on the table:
say "The table shivers under [the offending item].";
rule succeeds.
A complaint rule:
if something (called the offending item) on the table is scalding:
say "'Hey!' protests the table, practically smoking at [the offending item]. 'Heard of a trivet?'";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) on the armchair is scalding:
say "The armchair doesn't complain about [the offending item]; it just begins, quietly, to give off warm sweet clouds of blue steam, as though its inner opium-nature had been released.";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) in the Dining Room is scalding:
say "'Yes indeed,' [if the location is the Dining Room]says[otherwise]bellows[end if] the parquet. 'That [offending item] won't leave any sort of mark what-so-ever.'";
rule succeeds.
A complaint rule:
if something (called the offending item) on the table is spiky:
say "The table holds very very very still lest [the offending item] mar its finish. But its resentment is palpable.";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) on the velvet chair is spiky:
say "[The offending item] stabs the velvet of the red velvet chair, which draws itself up even more sharply in a pose of dutiful martyrdom.";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) which is spiky is on the ceramic tile:
say "'[The offending item] itches!' cries the ceramic tile.";
rule succeeds;
if something (called the offending item) in the location is spiky:
say "'[The offending item] should not be on a parquet floor,' sings the parquet floor sadly.";
rule succeeds;
if someone (called the offending person) in the location is wearing something spiky and the location is the Dining Room:
say "The parquet floor mutters about the things people wear to walk on parquet floors these days.";
rule succeeds.
A complaint rule:
if the table supports something which supports a drippy thing (called the offending item),
say "'[The offending item] could still theoretically dribble down here,' says the table nonchalantly. 'It's possible.'";
if the velvet chair supports a concerned thing (called the friend),
say "'[The friend] seems a little worried,' remarks the velvet chair helpfully."
A complaint rule:
if the concerned table can see a supporter (called the object of envy) which is not concerned:
say "The table looks jealously at [the object of envy]. 'Some people have such an easy life.'";
rule succeeds.
Instead of going to an adjacent room when the player is in the Dining Room:
say "'You're not leaving!?' whimpers the table at once."
Moreover, every time the player gets close to resolving this issue, his unhelpful companion Alison brings in something else inconvenient. We can use the counting of contented supporters to decide when the player is getting close to winning and it's time for her to bring something else...
The Tidy Kitchen is south of the Dining Room. Alison is a woman in the Tidy Kitchen. The kettle is a scalding thing. The ceramic tile is a cold portable supporter. It has carrying capacity 1. The platter is a scalding portable supporter. It has carrying capacity 1. The glass of ice water is a cold, drippy thing.
Instead of drinking the glass of ice water, say "It's not yours, it's for Alison, once she finishes cooking."
Alison carries the kettle, the tile, the platter, and the glass.
A behavior rule:
if ice water is carried by Alison and the player is in the Dining Room and almost all of the supporters are not concerned:
let the next victim be a random fixed in place contented supporter;
move the ice water to the next victim;
say "Humming to herself, Alison brings in [an ice water] and sets it down smack on [the next victim], then goes back out.";
rule succeeds.
A behavior rule:
if platter is carried by Alison and the player is in the Dining Room and almost all of the supporters are not concerned:
let the next victim be the red velvet chair;
move the platter to the next victim;
say "Whistling a jaunty tune, Alison brings in a hot platter and deposits it on [the next victim], then returns to the kitchen.";
rule succeeds.
A behavior rule:
if the tile is carried by Alison and the player is in the Dining Room and almost all of the supporters are not concerned:
let the next victim be a random contented chair;
move the tile to the next victim;
say "Humming to herself, Alison brings in [the tile] and sets it down smack on [the next victim], then goes back out.";
rule succeeds.
A behavior rule:
if kettle is carried by Alison and the player is in the Dining Room and at least three fixed in place supporters are contented:
let the next victim be the fussy table;
move the kettle to the next victim;
say "Just then the kettle boils in the kitchen. Whistling chirpily, Alison brings it in and sets it down smack on [the next victim], then goes back out.";
rule succeeds.
And just so that the player knows where he stands at the end of each turn:
An every turn rule:
if some of the things are concerned, say "You sense some resentment from [the list of concerned things]."
An every turn rule:
if the player is carrying more than one scalding thing:
let the dropped item be a random scalding thing carried by the player;
say "You can't hang onto so many burning hot things, and lose your grip on [the dropped item].[line break]";
silently try dropping the dropped item.
An every turn rule:
if almost all of the supporters are concerned,
say "'I hope everything is going well,' bellows Alison from the other room."
Finally, we need some rules to decide when the player is, in fact, finished.
An every turn rule:
now score is 5 minus the number of concerned things;
if the location is concerned, decrement the score;
if all of the supporters are concerned and the location is concerned, end the story;
if none of the supporters are concerned and the location is not concerned, end the story finally.
Test me with "i / take off left shoe / get the glass / put the glass on the platter / get the tile / drop the tile / get the kettle / put the kettle on tile / sit on the blue armchair".
|
|
The following is an almost-completely-faithful rewrite of Emily Short's "A Day for Fresh Sushi", which was originally written using the (very different) Inform 6 programming language. The -- let us be honest and call it a gimmick -- of this game is the evil fish, who has some unpleasant remark to offer on pretty much every action. But the effect would wear off fast if he repeated himself, so these comments need to be single-use only.
Inform 7's repeated action syntax makes it much tidier to write the same scenario, so:
The story headline is "Your basic surreal gay fish romance".
The Studio is a room. "[if visited]Decorated with Britney's signature flair. It was her innate sense of style that first made you forgive her that ludicrous name. And here it is displayed to the fullest: deep-hued drapes on the walls, the windows flung open with their stunning view of old Vienna, the faint smell of coffee that clings to everything. Her easel stands over by the windows, where the light is brightest.[otherwise]This is Britney's studio. You haven't been around here for a while, because of how busy you've been with work, and she's made a few changes -- the aquarium in the corner, for instance. But it still brings back a certain emotional sweetness from the days when you had just met for the first time... when you used to spend hours on the sofa...
You shake your head. No time for fantasy. Must feed fish.[end if]"
Instead of smelling the Studio:
say "The evil fish notices you sniffing the air. 'Vanilla Raspberry Roast,' it remarks. 'You really miss her, don't you.'
You glance over, startled, but the fish's mouth is open in a piscine equivalent of a laugh. You stifle the urge to skewer the thing..."
Instead of jumping:
say "'Er,' says the fish. 'Does that, like, EVER help??'"
Instead of going nowhere:
say "You can't leave until you've fed the fish. Otherwise, he'll complain, and you will never hear the end of it."
The cabinet is an openable closed container in the Studio. It is fixed in place. "A huge cabinet, in the guise of an armoire, stands between the windows." The description is "Large, and with a bit of an Art Nouveau theme going on in the shape of the doors." Understand "armoire" as the cabinet.
Instead of looking under the cabinet for the first time:
say "'Dustbunnies,' predicts the fish, with telling accuracy. It executes what for all the world looks like a fishy shudder. 'Lemme tell you, one time I accidentally flopped outta the tank, and I was TWO HOURS on the floor with those things STARING ME IN THE NOSE. It was frightening.'"
After opening the cabinet for the first time:
say "'There ya go,' says the fish. 'The girl is getting WARMER.'"
After closing the cabinet for the first time:
if the fish food is not found, say "'Ooh, what do you think, Bob? I think we're going to have to dock the girl a few points. HAVE ANOTHER LOOK, sweetcakes, there's a doll.'"
The cabinet contains some paints and some cloths. The description of the paints is "A bunch of tubes of oil paint, most of them in some state of grunginess, some with the tops twisted partway off."
After taking the paints for the first time:
say "'Boy,' says the fish, apparently to himself, 'I sure hope that's some food she's finding for me in there. You know, the yummy food in the ORANGE CAN.'"
After examining the paints for the first time:
say "'Tons of useful stuff in there,' hollers in the fish, in a syncopated burble."
The description of the cloths is "Various colors of drapery that Britney uses to set up backgrounds and clothe her models. She does a lot of portraiture, so this comes in handy. It's all a big messy wad at the moment. Organized is not her middle name." Understand "drapery" or "cloth" as the cloths. The indefinite article of the cloths is "a heap of". [see 3.17]
Instead of searching or looking under the cloths for the first time:
now the player is carrying the fish food;
now the fish food is found;
say "Poking around the cloths reveals -- ha HA! -- a vehemently orange can of fish food."
Instead of showing the cloths to the fish:
say "'What are you, some kind of sadist? I don't want to see a bunch of cloths! What kind of f'ing good, 'scuse my French, is that supposed to do me? I don't even wear pants for God's sake!'
He really looks upset. You start wondering whether apoplexy is an ailment common to fish."
After examining cloths for the first time:
say "'Whatcha looking at? I can't see through the doors, you know.'"
There is a can of fish food. Understand "canister" as the can. The description is "A vehemently orange canister of fish food." The fish food can be found or hidden. The fish food is hidden.
Instead of giving the can to the fish:
say "'I don't want the whole can, GeniusChyk. Just feed me and we'll ALL be happy, 'kay?"
Instead of showing the can to the fish:
say "'That's the ticket, sweetie! Bring it on.'"
Instead of opening the can:
say "'Oh, for--!' The evil fish breaks out in exasperation and hives. 'Screw the screwing around with the screwtop. SHE never has to do that.'
'>FEED FISH<' says the fish promptly, making fishy faces and pointing at you with his fin. 'Simplicity. Try it.'"
Instead of inserting the can into something:
say "'HelLLLOOO,' screams the fish. 'Whatever happened to FEEDING MEEE?'"
The easel is a supporter in the Studio. It is scenery. On the easel is a painting. Understand "portrait" or "image" as the painting.
The description of the painting is "Only partway finished, but you can tell what it is: Britney's mother. You only met the old woman once, before she faded out of existence in a little hospice in Salzburg.
In the picture, her hands are grasping tightly at a small grey bottle, the pills to which she became addicted in her old age, and strange, gargoyle-like forms clutch at her arms and whisper in her ears.
But the disturbing thing, the truly awful thing, is the small figure of Britney herself, down in the corner, unmistakable: she is walking away. Her back turned.
You thought she'd finally talked this out, but evidently not. Still feels guilty for leaving. You only barely stop yourself from tracing, with your finger, those tiny slumped shoulders..."
Instead of taking the painting, say "No, you'd better leave it. It'd freak her out if you moved it."
Before examining the painting for the first time:
say "A ferocious banging from the aquarium attracts your attention as you go to look at the painting. 'Hey!' screams the fish. 'She doesn't like strangers looking at her paintings before they're DOONNNE!'
'Shut up, you,' you reply casually. 'I'm not a stranger.' But the fish puts you off a little bit, and your heart is already in your mouth before you see the painting itself...".
Instead of examining the painting more than once:
say "Once is really enough. It's pretty much embedded in your consciousness now."
After doing something to the painting:
say "'So what's it of?' asks the fish, as you turn away. 'She never asks if I want to see them, you know?'
'Yeah? Man. I never knew my mother. Eggs, that's the way to go.'"
The window is scenery in the Studio. The window can be openable. The window can be open. It is openable and closed. Understand "windows" as the window. The description of the window is "[if open]Through the windows you get a lovely view of the street outside. At the moment, the glass is thrown open, and a light breeze is blowing through.[otherwise]Through the windows, you get a lovely view of the street outside -- the little fountain on the corner, the slightly dilapidated but nonetheless magnificent Jugendstil architecture of the facing building. The glass itself is shut, however.[end if]"
After opening the window for the first time:
say "'Thank god some air,' says the fish. 'Man, it was getting hard to breathe in here.' Two beats pass. 'Oh wait.'"
The table is scenery in the Studio. On the table is a vase. The vase is an open container. It is not openable.
The description of the table is "A monstrosity of poor taste and bad design: made of some heavy, French-empire sort of wood, with a single pillar for a central leg, carved in the image of Poseidon surrounded by nymphs. It's all scaley, and whenever you sit down, the trident has a tendency to stab you in the knee. But Britney assures you it's worth a fortune." The description of the vase is "A huge vase -- what you saw once described in a Regency romance as an epergne, maybe -- something so big that it would block someone sitting at the table from seeing anyone else also sitting at the table. But it does function nicely as a receptacle for hugeass bouquets of flowers."
Instead of looking under the table for the first time:
say "'You're not going to find anything down there,' whines the fish. 'I mean, c'mon. It's the fricking floor. Please tell me you can see that. I can see that. I'm a myopic fish in a tank ten feet away and I can tell you there is nothing there but floor.'"
After examining the table:
say "'That there is MY PA,' says the fish, pointing at the scaley triton figure with one fin."
Instead of inserting something which is not the bouquet into the vase:
say "'Okay, so, what were you, raised in a barn? Normal folks like to use that for flowers. Or so I've observed.'"
After inserting the bouquet into the vase for the first time:
say "You settle the flowers into the vase and arrange them so that they look sprightly.
'Oooh,' says the fish. 'No one ever changes the plant life in HERE. It's the same seaw--'
The player is carrying a telegram, a bouquet, and a lingerie bag. The player is wearing a chef hat.
The description of the telegram is "A telegram, apparently. And dated three days ago. [fixed letter spacing]TRIUMPH OURS STOP BACK SOON STOP BE SURE TO FEED FISH STOP[variable letter spacing]". [For printing options see 4.13.] Understand "yellow paper" as the telegram.
After examining the telegram for the first time:
say "'So,' blubs the evil fish. 'How about it? Little food over here?'"
After examining the telegram:
choose a random row in the Table of Insulting Fish Comments;
say "[comment entry][paragraph break]".
Table of Insulting Fish Comments
comment
"'Yeah, yeah,' says the fish. 'You having some trouble with the message, there? Confused? Something I could clear up for you?'"
"'Oookay, genius kid has some troubles in the reading comprehension department.' The fish taps his head meaningfully against the side of the tank. 'I'm so hungry I could eat my way out, you get my meaning?'"
"'I'll translate for you,' screams the fish in toothy fury. 'It says GIVE FOOD TO FISH!! How much more HELP do you NEED???"
The description of the chef hat is "A big white chef hat of the kind worn by chefs. In this case, you. Just goes to show what a hurry you were in on the way out of the restaurant." Understand "big" or "white" or "chefs" or "chef's" as the chef hat. [Inform knows that this is clothing because the player starts out wearing it, so there's no need to say so separately.]
The aquarium is a transparent open container in the Studio. It is not openable. "In one corner of the room, a large aquarium bubbles in menacing fashion." The description of the aquarium is "A very roomy aquarium, large enough to hold quite a variety of colorful sealife -- if any yet survived." Understand "tank" as the aquarium.
The aquarium contains some gravel and some seaweed. Understand "little rocks" as the gravel. Understand "weed" as the seaweed. The description of the gravel is "A lot of very small grey rocks." The description of the seaweed is "Fake plastic seaweed of the kind generally bought in stores for exactly this purpose."
The examine containers rule does nothing when examining the aquarium.
After examining the gravel for the first time:
say "The fish notices your gaze; makes a pathetic mime of trying to find little flakes of remaining food amongst the gravel."
After examining the seaweed for the first time:
say "'Nice, hunh?' blubs the fish, taking a stabbing bite out of one just by way of demonstration. 'Look so good I could eat it.'"
The aquarium contains an animal called an evil fish. The description of the fish is "Even if you had had no prior experience with him, you would be able to see at a glance that this is an evil fish. From his sharkish nose to his razor fins, every inch of his compact body exudes hatred and danger."
Instead of taking the evil fish:
say "The fish swims adroitly out of range of your bare hand. 'Hey,' he says, and the bubbles of his breath brush against your fingers. 'Count yourself lucky I don't bite you right now, you stinking mammal.'"
Instead of attacking the evil fish:
say "Oh, it's tempting. But it would get you in a world of hurt later on."
Instead of kissing the evil fish:
say "You're saving all your lovin for someone a lot cuddlier."
After examining the evil fish for the first time:
say "The fish glares at you, as though to underline this point."
After examining the evil fish for the second time:
say "'If you're looking for signs of malnutrition,' says the fish, 'LOOK NO FURTHER!!' And it sucks in its gills until you can see its ribcage."
An every turn rule:
choose a random row in the Table of Fish Banter;
say "[comment entry][paragraph break]".
|
comment |
used |
|
"'Hey, nice SKIN TONE,' shouts the evil fish. His words reach you in a spitting gurgle of aquarium water. 'You gone over to a pure eggplant diet these days?'" |
0 |
|
"The evil fish is floating belly up! ...oh, curse. He was toying with you. As soon as he sees you looking, he goes back to swimming around." |
0 |
|
"The evil fish darts to the bottom of the tank and moves the gravel around with his nose." |
0 |
|
"The evil fish is swimming around the tank in lazy circles." |
0 |
|
"The evil fish begins to butt his pointy nose against the glass walls of the tank." |
0 |
The description of the bouquet is "Okay, so it's silly and sentimental and no doubt a waste of money, of which there is never really enough, but: you miss her. You've missed her since ten seconds after she stepped aboard the shuttle to Luna Prime, and when you saw these -- her favorites, pure golden tulips like springtime -- you had to have them." Understand "flowers" or "tulip" or "tulips" as the bouquet.
After examining the bouquet for the first time:
say "'Oh, you shouldn't have,' says the fish. 'For me??'
You just respond with a livid glare."
Instead of smelling the bouquet for the first time:
say "'Mmm-mm,' says the fish. 'Damn, I sure wish I had olfactory abilities. Hey, if I did, I might be even better at noticing the presence or absence of FOOD.'"
The description of the lingerie bag is "You grant yourself the satisfaction of a little peek inside. You went with a pale, silky ivory this time -- it has that kind of sophisticated innocence, and it goes well with the purple of your skin. A small smirk of anticipation crosses your lips."
After examining the lingerie bag for the first time:
say "'What's in THERE?' asks the fish. 'Didja bring me take-out? I don't mind Chinese. They eat a lot of carp, but what do I care? I'm not a carp. Live and let live is what I s--'
'It's NOT take-out.' You stare the fish down and for once he actually backstrokes a stroke or two. 'It's PRIVATE.'"
After examining the lingerie bag for the second time:
say "'If it's not take-out, I don't see the relevance!' shouts the fish. 'Food is what you want in this situation. Food for MEEEE.'"
Check feeding:
if the noun is not the evil fish, say "That doesn't make much sense." instead;
if the player is not carrying the fish food, say "You need the fish food first." instead.
Carry out feeding:
increment the score;
say "Triumphantly, you dump the remaining contents of the canister of fish food into the tank. It floats on the surface like scum, but the fish for once stops jawing and starts eating. Like a normal fish. Blub, blub.[paragraph break]";
say "[bold type] *** TWO HOURS LATER ***[roman type][paragraph break]'So,' Britney says, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, 'where shall we go for dinner? Since I made the big bucks on this trip, it's my treat. Anywhere you like.'[paragraph break]'I've had a hankering all day,' you admit, as the two of you turn from the shuttle platform and head toward the bank of taxis. 'I could really go for some sashimi right now.'";
end the story finally.
Before feeding the fish food:
try feeding the evil fish instead.
When play begins:
say "You're on the run. You've got a million errands to do -- your apartment to get cleaned up, the fish to feed, lingerie to buy, Britney's shuttle to meet-- [paragraph break]The fish. You almost forgot. And it's in the studio, halfway across town from anywhere else you have to do. Oh well, you'll just zip over, take care of it, and hop back on the El. This'll be over in no time.[paragraph break]Don't you just hate days where you wake up the wrong color?[paragraph break]".
Test me with "x fish / g / kiss fish / x aquarium / x gravel / x seaweed / i / x telegram / x bouquet / smell bouquet / x lingerie / g / x hat / x window / open window / x painting / g / x cabinet / open cabinet / x cloths / search cloths / open food / feed fish".
