Stranger In These Parts - v.0.2 by Shawn Graham

Stranger In These Parts - v.0.2

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"Stranger in These Parts" by Shawn M Graham

When play begins: say "(This is a draft of a continually evolving simulation of social/geographic space in the Roman world, for my HIST3902a students at Carleton University. I intend to use it in class in early September. In the Winter term, my gaming & history class will dissect it, and build from it.  Hint - ASK about items, SHOW items TO people, avoid articles...)

Now.... on with the game!

Cicadas buzz in the distance - the heat is oppressive. Why you should have to go visit your uncle, now of all times, is beyond you. It could be worse, you reflect: it could be winter. What a hovel, you think, as you look around you- a small, non-descript rural villa. We grow peas here, you know. Just you, mother, father, and Eros the slave, whom your father bought on sale in the Beneventum market one day. A real bargain too.

So... how do you get from here to there?"

When play ends: say "Thank goodness that's over with!"

Section 1 - Procedure

Include Rideable Vehicles by Graham Nelson.

When play begins: now the left hand status line is "[time of day]". 

Asking someone about something is speech. Telling someone about something is speech. Answering someone that something is speech. Asking someone for something is speech. 

	A thing can be known or unknown. Eros is known. 

	Understand "ask [someone] about [any known thing]" as interrogating it about. interrogating it about is an action applying to two visible things. 
	
		Understand the commands "show" and "display" and "present" as something new. 

	Understand "show [something] to [someone]" or "display [something] to [someone]" or "present [something] to [someone]" as interrogating it about (with nouns reversed). Understand "show [someone] [something]" as interrogating it about. 
	
	Before printing the name of something (called the target): now the target is known. 
	
	Carry out interrogating someone about something:
	say "There is no reply." 

A room can be scored or unscored.
Carry out going to a unvisited scored room:
	increment the score.

A person can be knowing or ignorant. The player is ignorant.

At 7 PM: say "You are weary from your travels. Wishing not to spend any coin, you search for a secluded spot and begin to doze."; 
now the time of day is 9:00 AM.

	Work duration is a number that varies. 

	Every turn:
		now work duration is 0;
		increment the turn count;
		follow the time allotment rules;
		if work duration is 0, rule succeeds;
		increase the time of day by (work duration minutes - 1 minute). 

	The time allotment rules are a rulebook. 

	A time allotment rule for examining or looking:
		now work duration is 0;
		rule succeeds. 

	A time allotment rule for going:
		now work duration is 10;
		rule succeeds. 

	A time allotment rule for going up:
		now work duration is 20;
		rule succeeds. 
		
	A time allotment rule for going down:
		now work duration is 5;
		rule succeeds.

	A time allotment rule for waiting:
		now work duration is 10;
		rule succeeds. 

	The last time allotment rule:
		now work duration is 1. 

Price is a kind of value. $10.99 specifies a price with parts dollars and cents. A thing has a price. The price of a thing is usually $0.00. 

Money is a kind of thing. Denarius is a kind of money. The plural of Denarius is Denarii. The price of a denarius is $1.00. The printed name of a denarius is "denarius".

Talking is an action applying to one thing. Understand "talk to [someone]" as talking. 

Definition: A thing is present if it is in the location.

Section 2 - Ownership

Ownership relates one person (called the owner) to various things. The verb to own (he owns, they own, he owned, he is owned) implies the ownership relation. 

Definition: a thing is owned if the player owns it. 

Instead of buying something which is owned by the player: 
	say "You already own [the noun]." 

Instead of going somewhere when the player encloses something (called the stolen goods) which is not owned by the player: 
	if the owner of the stolen goods is not a person: 
		now the player owns the stolen goods; 
		continue the action; 
	if the owner of the stolen goods can see the player, 
		say "'Hey there buddy, not so fast,' says [the owner of the stolen goods]. 'You going to buy [the stolen goods] first, or am I gonna call the urban vigiles?'"; 
	otherwise continue the action. 

After taking inventory: 
	say "Altogether, you've got d[the player's cash] on your person." 

To decide what price is the player's cash: 
	let sum be the total price of money enclosed by the player; 
	decide on sum. 

To decide what price is the sum in (item - a container): 
	let sum be the total price of the money in the item; 
	decide on sum. 

When play begins: now every thing carried by the player is owned by the player. 

Section 3 - Purchasing and Sales

Definition: a thing is worthless if the price of it is $0.00. Definition: a thing is valuable if it is not worthless. 

A thing can be for sale. 

Rule for printing room description details of something (called target) which is for sale (this is the disclose prices in room description rule): say " ([price of the target])". 

Before listing contents: group money together giving articles. 

Instead of examining a for sale thing (this is the describe things by price rule): 
	say "[The noun] costs [the price of the noun], payable to [the owner of the noun]." 

Section 4 - Scenes

Setting out is a scene. Setting out begins when play begins.

At the Gates is a scene. Setting out ends when At the Gates begins.

At the Gates ends when the player is knowing.

Travelling to Capua is a scene. Travelling to Capua begins when At the Gates Ends.

Section 5 - Story

The Villa is a room. "The villa has definitely seen better days. The roof could use repairing. The mosaic in the fauces is, well, rather bland.  There's a path off to the south. [if unvisited] Eros, striding past you, on his way to the fields, stops and glares at you. He growls, 'Well, little master?' [end if] "

The linen sack is a player's holdall. The player is carrying the linen sack.
The carrying capacity of the player is 4.
In the linen sack is a letter from the Uncle. The description of the letter is "It's a short message on a wax tablet. 'Send the boy to me in Pompeii as soon as possible, business proposition for you both'".
In the linen sack is 15 denarii. "Must be careful; this has to last the whole way."

Uncle is a man.

Eros is a man in the Villa. "He's old, queroulous, and smells slightly of fish. You'd like to avert your eyes."
	
The fauces is north of the villa. "You don't really want to go any further in. You've said your goodbyes; anything else would just make you cry."

The Villa is north of the path.	

	Instead of asking Eros  about a topic listed in the Table of Eros Topics:
		say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". 

	Instead of interrogating Eros about an item listed in the Table of Eros Items:
		say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". 

	Table of Eros Items
	item   	reply   
	letter   	"'I never learned how to read,' he remarks[if Eros can see the letter], glancing over the contents[otherwise], after you have offered a detailed description[end if]. 'So stop faffing around and get going. You take the path south to Beneventum - which you knew already.'"   
	Eros   	"He merely glares at you, resentfully."   
	

	Table of Eros Topics
	topic   	reply   
	"Beneventum"   	"'It's on the via Appia, which should help you,' he remarks. 'Bit of a cess pit, if you ask me, all that traffic going through there.'"   
	"the route"   	"'How should I know? Do I ever get to go anywhere? Might as well be the moon. They brought me here from Delos, I never bothered to admire the scenerey,' he sneers. 'Ask when you get there.'"
	"mosaic"     	"Ugly."
	"fish"    	 "'I just had my breakfast.'"
	"city"	 "'You go down the path - you know that.'"
	   
	   
The Path is a room. "It's a dusty narrow path, leading down the hill to the city. No one much travels it, except for your family. Far in the distance you can see it joining the main road, down the hillside."

Beneventum City Gate is below the path. "You can see the hustle and bustle of the city just through the archway in the city wall.  Many people mill about. Now what? Roads and paths seem to run everywhere.  Graffiti is scrawled on the walls. Perhaps somebody here will know the route to take." The Beneventum City Gate contains graffiti. The graffiti is scenery.

The description of the graffiti is "'Marcellus hic cacavit bene.'"

Instead of examining beneventum city gate , say "I'm not well-versed in architecture, but it's an arch, and it keeps the wall from falling on us. Good job, that arch."


After going to Beneventum City Gate:
   say "You walk downhill for some distance... it is a long, uneventual walk. It is now the third hour of the morning.";
   now the time of day is 12:00 pm;
   continue the action.
	   
Beneventum City Gate is scored.

At the Gates begins when the player is in Beneventum City Gate.

The road to the hills is west of Beneventum City Gate.  "The road begins to gradually peter out towards the west, as if this isn't really where you want to be going at all."

The road to the fields is south of Beneventum City Gate. 
The road to the forum is east of Beneventum City Gate. The Road to Caudium is southwest of Beneventum City Gate.

OutsideBeneventum is a region. The road to the hills, The road to the fields, The Road to Caudium are in OutsideBeneventum.



Instead of going a direction during At the Gates, say "But which way? Who to ask? And what to ask?"
Instead of waiting during At the Gates, say "You wander around the gate area, trying to not look so obviously lost. Perhaps if you showed the letter to someone..."

Every turn during At the Gates:
	reset passerby;
	choose a random row in the Table of Atmospheric Events;
	say "[event entry][paragraph break]" 

Table of Atmospheric Events
event
"Slowly a [passerby] strolls by, turning to look at you as they pass."
"Some [passerby] nearly bumps into you."
"You dodge to avoid [a passerby]."
"You weave around [a passerby], who has stalled to look at a graffito."
"There's a ruckus as one of the ubiquitous ox-carts nearly collides with [a passerby] crossing the street."
"[The passerby] beside you waves to a friend across the street."
"To your left, [a passerby] drops her purse, and swears as she retrieves it." 

Hair color is a kind of value. A person has hair color. the hair colors are red-headed, brunette, blonde. 
	Height is a kind of value. A person has height. The heights are tall, medium-height, short. 
	Grooming is a kind of value. A person has grooming. The groomings are messy and tidy. 

To reset passerby:
	now the hair color of the passerby is a random hair color;
	now the height of the passerby is a random height;
	now the grooming of the passerby is a random grooming. 

The passerby is a woman in Beneventum City Gate. The passerby is scenery. Understand "woman" or "lady"as the passerby. The printed name of the passerby is "[one of]woman[or]lady[purely at random]". 

Before printing the name of the passerby:
	if a random chance of 1 in 4 succeeds, say "[height] ";
	if a random chance of 1 in 4 succeeds, say "[grooming] ";
	if a random chance of 1 in 4 succeeds, say "[hair color] ". 
	Understand the hair color property as describing the passerby. Understand the height property as describing the passerby. Understand the grooming property as describing the passerby. 

Instead of examining a passerby:
	repeat through Table of Passerby Descriptions:
		if hair entry is the hair color of the passerby and height entry is the height of the passerby and grooming entry is the grooming of the passerby, say "[description entry][paragraph break]". 

	   
Table of Passerby Descriptions
hair	height	grooming	description
red-headed	tall	messy	"An old lady with long red unkempt hair, and bent to hide how tall she is."
red-headed	medium-height	messy	"A shaggy red-head with shingled hair."
red-headed	short	messy	"Almost an urchin, and very young, with ginger hair and a smudged nose and far too many freckles."
red-headed	tall	tidy	"A precise patrician with henna-red hair."
red-headed	medium-height	tidy	"Her hair is red in the way that frescoes are red: not by nature but by art. The rest of her clothing is pretty ordinary, though."
red-headed	short	tidy	"Thin and small in every sense, with chin-length red-hair."
brunette	tall	messy	"A Juno-esque woman with dark hair, wearing something resembling a tent."
brunette	medium-height	messy	"An unremarkable woman with dark brown hair and the aura of needing a wash."
brunette	short	messy	"There are mustard stains on the tunic of this short brown-haired woman. Estimated age ca. 40. Possibly homeless."
brunette	tall	tidy	"A well kempt lady."
brunette	medium-height	tidy	"Medium-height, brown-haired, generally nondescript."
brunette	short	tidy	"A neat little dark-haired girl."
blonde	tall	messy	"A tall Gaulish-looking girl of about thirteen who looks as though she has not yet figured out how to get her wardrobe to catch up with her rate of growth. "
blonde	medium-height	messy	"Someone's handmaiden, no doubt."
blonde	short	messy	"Probably from Britannia, with that hair."
 
 
Instead of asking passerby  about a topic listed in the Table of passerby Topics:
		say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". 

	Instead of interrogating passerby about an item listed in the Table of passerby Items:
		say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". 

	Table of passerby Items
	item   	reply   
	letter   	"'Can't you read?,' [if passerby can see the letter], glancing over the contents[otherwise], after you have offered a detailed description[end if]. 'Oh, yes. Now I recall. You  probably ought to take the road to  Caudium, over that way.'"   
	passerby   	"She merely gives you a look, and moves away quickly."  


	Table of passerby Topics
	topic   	reply   
	"Beneventum"   	"'A nice enough town - founded as Maleventum though!,' she laughs. 'Still, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.'"   
	"the route"   	"'Well, it helps to know where you're going, dear.'" 
	"festival"	"'It is the festival of our mother, Isis. The Iseum is towards the center of town.  But I shan't tell you anything more about it!'"
	"ox-cart"	"'They're slow and smelly. But I suppose they make a welcome respite from walking. If you like farting cows.'"
	"friend" 	"'Oh, we're all on our way to the festival.'"
	"Pompeii"	"''Hmm. Oh, yes. You probably ought to take the road to Caudium.'"

Instead of telling someone about something, try asking the noun about it. Instead of answering the noun that something, try asking the noun about it. 

After asking the passerby about "Caudium":
	  say " She nods, and says 'Yes, take a left, turn at the water fountain, and head out to the southwest about 5 hours'";
	    if the player is ignorant, now the player is knowing.

Instead of going OutsideBeneventum when the player is ignorant: say "But you don't know where to go!"

A shop is a kind of room. A shop has a time called the opening hour. The opening hour of the shop is usually 8 AM. A shop has a time called the closing hour. A shop usually has closing hour 4 PM. 

Check going to a shop (called the target): 
	if the time of day is before the opening hour of the target, 
		say "[The target] is locked up until [the opening hour of the target]." instead. 

Check going to a shop (called the target): 
	if the time of day is after the closing hour of the target, 
		say "[The target] has been closed since [the closing hour of the target]." instead. 

Every turn when the location is a shop: 
	let deadline be the closing hour of the location; 
	if the deadline is before the time of day: 
		let target be a random adjacent room which is not a shop; 
		say "You are gently but firmly ushered out, since [the location] is closing."; 
		move the player to the target. 

Caius' Bakery is a shop. It is south of the the road to the forum. The opening hour of Caius' Bakery is 6:00 AM. The closing hour of Caius' Bakery is 12:30 PM. "The selection has been somewhat picked over, leaving you with your choice of round loaf bread, or round loaf bread." 
 In Caius' Bakery there is bread.  The bread is owned by Caius.The bread is edible. The bread is for sale. The price of the bread is $1.00. Caius is known.
 Carry out eating something:
   say "The constant knawing in your stomach, for the moment, ceases."
   
The Caupona is a shop.  The opening hour of the caupona is 12:00 pm. The closing hour of the caupona is 12:00 am. "A dingy, unpleasant looking drinking establishment. A fullery is to the north. [if unvisited] There's a trim little man at the bar, staringly forlornly at a cup.  He seems to be muttering under his breath. 'Make my bread Caius, you burned the loaf Caius, this is hard shit Caius, well, get up late and see what's left why don't you....' [end if]"

Caius is a man. Caius is in the Caupona.  "Caius is looking at you."

Instead of asking Caius about a topic listed in the Table of Caius Topics:
		say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". 

	Instead of interrogating Caius about an item listed in the Table of Caius Items:
		say "[reply entry][paragraph break]". 

	Table of Caius Items
	item   	reply   
	letter   	"'Hurray for you, a letter,' he remarks[if Eros can see the letter], glancing over the contents[otherwise], after you have offered a detailed description[end if]. 'Pompeii's out by the coast, isn't it? You want to go west then.'"   
	Caius   	"I'm a baker. I bake. You buy my bread, you eat. You turn up late, you get what's left." 
	  

	Table of Caius Topics
	topic   	reply   
	"bakery"   	"'It's on the other side of the street, over there' he waves vaguely out the door."   
	"the route"   	"'Leave town, follow the setting sun I suppose. Or read a mile stone. Or hitch a ride. I've never been there, myself.' he says, staring back at his cup."
	"bread"   	"'It's bread. I make it with flour and water. My father made bread. His father made bread. You eat bread. You pay for bread - sometimes.' he said with a snort."   	
	"the bakery"   	"'It's on the other side of the street, over there' he waves vaguely out the door."   
	
After asking Caius about "price":
  say " 'You want to buy bread, eh? Well, the shop might still be open. If it is, great, come on over. If not, too bad - you should've got up earlier.' Caius gets up, and leaves the shop.";
  move Caius to Caius' bakery.
 	
The Fullery is a shop. It is north of the road to the forum. The opening hour of the Fullery is 10:00 AM. The closing hour of the Fullery is 3:30 PM. "The sharp smell of piss attacks the air. Miserable looking slaves tred the wool in giant vats you can see beyond the doorway. Looks like it was a house, once."

Instead of going to the Fullery when the time of day is before the opening hour of the Fullery for the second time: 
	say "You rattle at the door again. 'Piss in the bucket or come back later,' yells a voice from within." 

The road to the forum is west of the Caupona. "You can see the forum further up the street, but it appears blocked by some sort of festival. There might be some shops to the east though."

A hill road is a kind of room.  The printed name of a hill road is usually "Lost in Shepherd's paths". The description of a hill road is usually "Rocks, scrub, trees, sheep. [if unvisited]You can't see any landmarks, and there's no one to ask for help. [end if] There look to be paths in every direction. What did father say about what to do when lost?"  The shepherd's path is a hill road. The shepherd's path is west of the road to the hills.

Bee1, Bee2, Bee3, Bee4, Bee5, Bee6, Bee7, Bee8, Bee9, and Bee10 are hill roads. 


When play begins:
	now right hand status line is "[number of visited rooms]/[number of rooms]";
	repeat with place running through hill roads:
		now a random hill road is mapped north of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped northwest of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped west of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped southwest of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped south of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped southeast of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped east of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped northeast of place;
		now a random hill road is mapped above place;
		now a random hill road is mapped below place;
		now a random hill road is mapped inside place;
		now a random hill road is mapped outside place. 

After waiting for four to six turns:
	say "A shepherd approaches. He looks at you laconically, as if he knows you don't belong here in the high hills. He shows you the way back to the road.";
	move player to the Road to Caudium.


The Road to Caudium is a room.  "[if unvisited]After the confusion of Beneventum, the quiet of the road to Caudium comes as a relief. The road rises gently to the east, away from Beneventum. [end if] It's a well made road, lined with tall pines and tombstones, dis manibus." 

The ox-cart is a rideable vehicle in the Road to Caudium.
The driver is a man. "A hard-looking man sits up in the ox-cart, the reins slack in his hands. I'm going to the village of Caudium, son.' He emphasized 'village', like it was integral to the name.". The driver is on the ox-cart.

The Road to Caudium is scored.

The Village of Caudium is west of the Road to Caudium. "Just a stop on the road.  

--->This is as far as we've gotten so far, folks. More to come, errors to be fixed, especially all of this ox-cart malarky. "

Instead of going to the Village of Caudium when the player is not on the ox-cart:
     say "Foot-sore and weary, you begin walking up hill towards Caudium. Dusty, thirsty, and hungry, you arrive towards the end of the day.";
       now the time of day is 6:30 pm;
       move the player to the Village of Caudium;
      continue the action.
      
 After going to the Village of Caudium:
    say "You negotiate a price with the ox-cart driver (1 denarius), and settle in for the monotonous journey. The gentle swaying of the cart lulls you to sleep.";
     now the time of day is 5:30 pm;
     move the player to the Village of Caudium;
     continue the action.