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	RPGchess
Original Concept & Rules by: Patrick Mulcahy & Geoff Cowper-Hill
Copyright © 1987-2001. Patrick Mulcahy / AstroQab All rights reserved.

The Computer Game - Rules of Play

This is a 2-player game.

Although not technically an RPG (Role Playing game), RPGchess was inspired by the RPG game AD&D; (Advanced Dungeons & Dragons) that I played during the 1980s. RPG also stands for 'Rules by Patrick and Geoff' because the rules of RPGchess were devised by Patrick Mulcahy (me) and Geoff Cowper-Hill.

Like normal chess, the object of RPGchess is to eliminate the opposing Wizard (King). To achieve this you must reduce its Health score to 0 by attacking it with your pieces.

----General Sequence of Events

1) First you make a Game Board move. (Optional if an active BB exists.)
2) Second you have your Battle Board moves (if an active BB exists). A BB move is also optional.

----Abreviations

GB = Game Board (8x8 square)
BB = Battle Board (10x10 square)

----Operations

If you wish to keep track of whose Turn it is left-click the green button on your side of the GB after you have completed your go. This is useful if you are saving a game.

Helpful Hint: If a piece somehow ends up where it's not supposed to be use the mouse-pointer+{Shift} on the GB, or mouse-pointer+{Control} on the BB to manouver it where you want it to go. (There are possibly still a few bugs, but at least this method provides a quick and painless remedy.) On entering the BB, if a piece lands on a BB square already occupied move it to any vacant adjacent square (but I think I might have fixed this so that it wont happen).

Select your pieces - ie, change them into their moveable form with a left click of the mouse. Right click to change them back again.

To move the pieces - left-click on a piece (to select it) then use mouse-pointer+{Shift} (on the GB) and with mouse-pointer+{Control} (on the BB). Position the mouse-pointer on an empty square and press {Shift} or {Control}. You can also use the number key-pad to move a 'selected' piece (green) on the BB.

While a BB is active you MUST exit your pieces from the BB via an Exit Door (coloured bright green on the BB). (If you don't the game will become unplayable.) Use the number-pad to move your piece through the door and onto the GB. Your piece will be automatically moved onto the GB to the relative square adjacent to the BB Token. Note: that if the relative square you wish to move your piece to on the GB is not vacant then you are not permitted to leave the BB via that particular BB Door. After you move your piece onto the GB it may not move from the square adjacent to the BB Token until your next Turn.

To attack any piece - select your piece with a left-click and then place the mouse-pointer over the piece you wish to attack and press the {Spacebar}. This includes pieces in a Pieces Resting/Multipiece Box.

----General Rules

On the Game Board (8x8)

1. Move your pieces the same as in Chess.

2. You may only select (i.e. highlighting in green with a left click) ONE piece per turn on the GB. (Make sure that you deselect your piece with a right-click after your turn.)

On the Battle Board (10x10)

1. Only three pieces per player are allowed to participate in any particular BB millee - and only the first three pieces that enter a BB are allowed onto that instance of the BB. They may however leave the BB and return later - presuming of course that the particular BB instance is still active when they wish to return.

2. Move in any direction or combination of directions up to the number of squares of the piece's BB Movement Rate. (See below.) When a piece enters an already initiated Battle (from the GB) you must count the square your piece appears on as the first square of the BB Movement Rate during that initial Turn. After the Turn of initial entry you may count a piece's BB Movement beginning from any square adjacent to the piece.

3. You may select and move each of your pieces on the BB once per your Turn.

On Winning A BB...the Rest Box

The Rest Box is merely a place for putting pieces (sometimes multiple) that are left on the BB after a battle has concluded.

When your piece(s) has defeated all the opposing pieces on a BB (and therefore your colour pieces are the only ones left on the BB) they must move to a Rest Box and Rest there for one Turn. White and Black both have two Rest Boxes each. Make sure you use a correct Rest Box for your colour and make sure it is the right box number that you use (otherwise the game wont function correctly). Hopefully two Rest/Multipiece boxes are enough for each player. Move your piece out of the Multipiece Box and onto the Multipiece Token when there is only one piece in the box (after resting one Turn). Right-click to remove the token from the GB.

Moving you Winning Pieces from the BB to the Rest Box...

1) Deselect your BB pieces with a right-click (if required)
2) Press {A}, {S}, {Q}, or {W} depending on which Rest Box you will be using
3) Select each of your BB pieces (with a left-click) one at a time and using mouse-pointer+{Shift} relocate each piece to the desired Rest Box.

Key {A} : White Rest/Multipiece Box #1 (positioned lower left)
Key {S} : White Rest/Multipiece Box #2 (positioned lower right)
Key {Q} : Black Rest/Multipiece Box #1 (positioned upper left)
Key {W} : Black Rest/Multipiece Box #2 (positioned upper right)

After you have Rested for One Turn (note: this can be your Turn or the other Player's Turn that you Rest in) left-click on the Pieces Resting Token and it will turn right-way up. You can now move your pieces out of the Rest Box and off the Rest Square - one per Turn (if you wish to).

The pieces in a Rest Box are symbolically still located on the GB where the Pieces Resting or Multipiece Token is situated on the GB. When they move out of the Rest/Multipiece Box move them back onto the GB to the Multipiece Token and move from that place (in any legal direction of movement) to your desired location. Right click the Multi-piece Token to remove it from the GB after all your pieces have exited the respective Multipiece Box.

----Rules of Combat

Only ONE Battle can be initiated at any one time.

The computer calculates all the combat percentages automatically. They are based on the Piece Statistics (see below).

The Initial Attack. The piece that initiates the Battle receives an automatic Hit and Damage on the defending piece as they enter the BB. This is called the Initial Attack. The defending piece MAY NOT move or attack until the next Turn.

After the Initial Attack it is the next Player's Turn - i.e., the Player who owns the Initial defending piece. Thus if Black initiated the Battle by attacking White's piece then it is now White's Turn. FIRST he may (or may not) move one of his pieces on the GB, AND THEN he may (or may not) move his BB piece(s). (Note that it is ONLY while a BB is active that a player can choose to NOT move a piece on the GB during his Turn.)

During the GB phase of a Turn he may bring another piece onto the BB (from the GB) IF that piece can move immediately to the BB Token using a legal 'chess move' on the GB. This action would then be counted as his GB move. To enter Battle on the BB highlight your piece with a left-click and then place your mouse-pointer over the BB Token and press the {Spacebar}.

Pieces entering the BB in this way can move and attack on the BB during the Turn of entry. (But note that they must count one square of BB Movement for the square of the BB on which they initially appear on entering it. This only applies in the Turn that the piece originally enters the BB.)

After all the pieces that wish (and are able) to attack have attacked on the BB then it is the other player's Turn. In our example it would now be the GB phase of Black's Turn.

A piece can Move and Attack, or Attack and Move while on the BB, but cannot Move, Attack, and Move in the same Turn. A piece can leave the BB during a Battle by moving through an Exit Door (bright green) on one of the sides or corners of the BB - but the respective square adjacent to the BB Token on the GB must be vacant and it must be a square that is legal according to the standard direction of movement of the particular chess piece. The pieces may exit the BB as follows...

Warrior (Pawn) - North & South Exits (differs to standard chess rules because a Warrior can retreat South, but a Pawn cannot move South.)
Archer (Rook) - North, South, East & West.
Assassin (Knight) - Any direction.
Priest (Bishop) - North-East, North-West, South-East & South-West (i.e. via the corner exits of the BB)
Champion (Queen) - Any direction.
Wizard (King) - Any direction.

----The Pieces

Warrior

If one of your Warriors reaches the opposite side of the GB and your Champion has been eliminated then you may press {P} on the keyboard and your Warrior will itself become a Champion. Note that you may have a Warrior sitting on the final opposite row of the GB waiting for when/if your Champion becomes eliminated so that you may then press {P} and he will become the new Champion. Note that you must select your Warrior (with a left-click) before pressing {P}.

Assassin

I play the Assassin's 'Sneak Attack' a little differently in this computor-based version of the game. It is in fact simpler than the 'board game' rules. Like all the other pieces, your Assassin must be in a position to make a standard chess 'taking' move (as a chess Knight) to attack another piece on the GB. To make a 'Sneak Attack' place the mouse-pointer over the piece you wish to attack and press the {Spacebar}. Choose 'Sneak Attack' from the menu. If your 'Sneak Attack' succeeds you may choose to try and 'Escape'. If your 'Escape' succeeds your piece remains in its original place and it's the other player's Turn. Try to imagine the Assassin as sneaking up to the other piece and launching a 'surprise attack' and then sneaking back to its original place. If its 'escape' attempt fails then it becomes revealed in enemy territory (i.e. it winds up on the BB at the location of the piece it tried to attack).

Priest

In this version of RPGchess the Priest has 15 Heal spells. The Priest can Heal any other piece of the same colour as the Priest, but it cannot Heal itself.

On the Game Board the Priest may heal a piece on an adjacent square of the same colour as the Priest's square.

On the GB the Priest may Move OR Heal a piece during a Turn, but it may NOT do both in the same Turn.

On the BB it may Heal a piece on any square adjacent to the Priest's square, and it may Heal and Move in the same Turn.

The Heal spell adds 1 to 8 units to a piece's Health score, but not more than the piece's maximum Health score. (Note that in fact a Priest can raise a piece's Health above its normal limit by applying a Heal spell when the piece is nearly at its maximum, but if the piece is already over its maximum and another Heal spell is applied then its Health score will reduce to its normal maximum.)

Wizard

The Wizard has 10 spells comprised of any combination of his two available spells.

In this version of RPGchess the Wizard has two spells that he may use on the BB (but not on the GB).

Like the Priest the Wizard may Move and cast a spell in the same Turn.

Energy Shield: is a defensive spell that adds from 1 to 8 units to his Health score. It can only be used on himself and can raise his Health score considerably higher than his normal maximum Health score.

Shooting Star: is an attacking spell that fires two plasma bolts that deal from 1 to 8 points of damage each. The defending piece must successfully roll its Spell Evasion % in order to evade the effects of each bolt.

----Piece Statistics

¹ 2 arrows (defending piece must roll its Missile Evasion % for each arrow).
Arrow Range = 7 (with no intervening pieces) or 5 (with intervening pieces)

----Function Keys

{ESC} Quit Game
{F1} Information Page
{F4} Restart Game
{F5} Save Game
{F6} Load Game