V079GUVN@ubvms.BITNET.UUCP (11/17/87)
Greetings all. Since there was discussion on Zork encoding, I feel I can now ask about Wizardry encoding. Does anymody know about the encoding scheme for Wizardry characters? (Either Apple or IBM version. I KNOW that these two are encoded quite differently.) Thanx in advance - The Priest - V079GUVN @ UBVMSC
Bruce_Kahn@maytag.ceo.dg.COM (11/18/87)
Wizardry uses different encoding based on the system you use (or so Im told) AND on the game itself. On the Apple, Wiz I & II used one scheme but Wiz III used a totally offbeat scheme that would cause any character editors to mess up. There are a lot of details that need to be discussed if you want to find out how the text/data is encoded. The text is actually not encoded but all the data is. Ill type up a file on it and get it out later this week (hopefully).
mkao@pnet01.cts.COM (Mike Kao) (11/19/87)
Are you sure they are encoded? Like many a curious hacker, I've gone through
Wizardry with a sector editor and have been able to find the character
information quite easily. As far as I can recall, there was no encoding
involved. As to the program itself, I believe it's a modified version of Apple
(UCSD) Pascal, which Sir-Tech calls "Wiz-code."
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-- Mike Kao
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INET: mkao@pnet01.CTS.COMkus3@sphinx.uchicago.edu (Bob Kusumoto) (11/20/87)
I remember seeing an old issue of inCider where there was a BASIC program
(yawn :-) that scanned the back-up disk made from the back-up utility. I also
remember a version of this wizfix program for Legacy that had the names of the
correct items in it (the item lists were different between the first 2 Wizs
and the 3rd one). Try looking at the back-up with a sector editor and see if
some of the basic stuff makes sense.
Bob Kusumoto
Internet: kus3@sphinx.uchicago.edu
BITNET: kus3@sphinx.uchicago.bitnet
UUCP: ...{!inhp4!gargoyle,!oddjob}!sphinx!kus3jon@cisunx.UUCP (11/20/87)
In article <2676@sphinx.uchicago.edu> kus3@sphinx.uchicago.edu.UUCP (Bob Kusumoto) writes: >I remember seeing an old issue of inCider where there was a BASIC program >(yawn :-) that scanned the back-up disk made from the back-up utility. I also >remember a version of this wizfix program for Legacy that had the names of the >correct items in it (the item lists were different between the first 2 Wizs >and the 3rd one). Try looking at the back-up with a sector editor and see if >some of the basic stuff makes sense. > > >Bob Kusumoto I have a copy of this "Wizfix" program and if anyone's interested, maybe I can run executioner on it and post it to the net or to the listserver. The program is written in basic and is pretty amazing in what it can do for a character. After starting the program, it asks you to insert the backup disk of your Wizardry characters and it then scans the disk loading all of the characters into memory. From here it lists out all of the characters names and asks which one you want to work with. The program is completely menu driven and has many options which can be performed on a character: o You can resurrect a character which has been copletely lost (i.e. he's "ashes") o You can pick up a character, dead or alive, who is lost in the maze and move him back to the castle. o You can change any attribute of a character: race, alignment, strength, class, etc. o A character can be given more experience points, or more gold, levels, etc. o Any object that a character has can be identified. o You can give a character any object that exists in the game. o The program has an option to print out a character data sheet if you have a printer. o Some other stuff, I'm sure. I haven't used it in a while. After your done working with/changing a character, you can either cancel what you've done or write the new character back to disk. The program is written for the first two scenarios (It has lists of objects from these two) but any character change can also be done on 3rd scenario characters as long as you don't try to change their possessions. A couple of warnings: the program seems to have a minor bug involving the possessions of a character. Sometimes when you alter a character's possessions, and then restart the game, you will find that your character is missing some of his other possessions or has different ones, even though you did nothing to these particular objects. A minor hassle- just have to go back to Wizfix again. Also, I have to warn that this program has the potential to ruin the fun of the game for a player. One of the great things about the game (you might not realize this until after you've used Wizfix) is the fun of going down and trying to gain magical items, armor, etc. and not knowing what things you have yet to discover. Wizfix, unfortunately, lists out complete screens of any object that may be found or bought in a game: from a paltry dagger to +3 evil plate mail, to Werdna's amulate, to the Knight of Diamond's complete armor collection. It's just not that much fun to play anymore once you know all the objects that can be found. It's also not that much fun to play with all 18's, all spells, and the negative armor class of, like the manual says, a Sherman tank. Wait till you have the opurtunity and fun of killing an entire band of gas dragons and they run from you. If you can control yourself, though, and don't abuse it, Wizfix can actually relieve much of the frustration that we all know wizardry is capable of causing us. I never really used it that much except to bring back people from ashes (I'll be d*mned if I'm going to lose a character just because those idiots at the Temple of Cant are so inept) and to also restore a characters experience points (I'll be double d*mned if I'm going to let that b*st*rd vampire on level 9 suck off 2 levels from my prized fighter just because my mage didn't get his tiltowait spell off in time. Anyways, I'll go about executionering the thing for everyone and you guys let me know where you want it. Is the net a proper enough place? And remember the motto of the Mad Overlord: Trebor Sux! Jon Pearsall -- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jon Pearsall, University of Pittsburgh =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = !pitt!cisunx!jmp As the Zorg closes in, Spaceman Spiff = = jmp@unix.cis.pittsburgh.edu cooly draws his death ray blaster. = =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
mkao@pnet01.cts.COM (Mike Kao) (11/22/87)
Just a little trivia on Wizardry here.
Have you all noticed that "Werdna" is "Andrew" backwards and "Trebor" is
(surprise, surpise) "Robert"? For those of you who don't know, Andrew
Greenberg and Robert Woodhead are the designers of this remarkable game.
To insure my reception of any replies, please respond via e-mail. Thanks!
-- Mike Kao
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INET: mkao@pnet01.CTS.COMgwyn@brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn ) (11/23/87)
In article <8711220158.AA05760@crash.cts.com> pnet01!mkao@nosc.MIL writes: >Have you all noticed that "Werdna" is "Andrew" backwards and "Trebor" is >(surprise, surpise) "Robert"? A perhaps more interesting question is how many people DIDN'T notice this.