Menegrath is a dungeon labyrinth of nine levels. A solo player can have up to fifteen characters while a cooperative party (multi-player) can also have up to fifteen characters between them.
The Book of Souls contains the character roster and is a based upon a point cost system, the actual number of available characters depending on character power. Do you wish a large party of lower or moderate power characters? Or would you diminish party size to have one or more very powerful souls? The choice is yours
Menegrath becomes more perilous with each successive maze. A character who survives a level can enter the next. Total victory is to exit the Ninth Maze. Characters also grow in power and treasure as they progress through Experience Points that can be spent to improve a soul’s statistics.
Magical items and monetary treasure can also be gained and upon exiting any maze characters may rest in a town and purchase items and equipment with treasure found in Menegrath, as well as have town encounters.
CHARACTERS (souls)
A soul has seven attributes: Name, Sex, Kindred, Class, Strength, Constitution and Experience.
Name and Sex are for game color and identification during the game.
KINDRED: Human, Elf, Dwarf, Ogre, Troll, Giant, Fairy, Gremlin, Leprechaun, Halfling or Goblin.
Each Kindred has varying powers and abilities. Each also has a code used in the game for tracking purposes and for Orders. The Kindred code is in parenthesis preceding each description.
There are only two classes in Menegrath; Fighter (F) and Magic-User (M).
KINDRED TABLE
CODE KINDRED CLASS STR CON SPECIAL COST
(D) Dwarf F 30 40 Dark See, Path, d6 Goblin Bonus 23
M 30 40 As F--With Spells 36
(E) Elf F 25 25 Dark See, Immune to Paralysis 15
M 20 25 As F-- With Spells 18
(F) Fairy F 1 1 Dark See, Ignore Spell, Law Ally 1
M 1 1 As F- - With Spells 2
(H) Halfling F 5 15 Hide, Silent Step 5
M 4 15 As F – With Spells 7
(K) Goblin F 7 20 Dark See, Path, d6 Dwarf Bonus 6
(L) Leprechaun M 3 4 Find Gold 4
(O) Ogre F 35 40 Dark See, Chaos Ally 29
M 35 40 As F -- With Spells 46
(P) Human F 15 30 Luck 9
M 10 30 As F – With Spells 11
(T) Troll F 50 50 Dark See, Chaos Ally 57
(X) Giant F 60 60 Quake 72
NOTES ON KINDRED TABLE
A solo player has 100 points to spend on soul creation.
Points are divided among multiple players.
Once characters are chosen, they are recorded in the Book of Souls. Any character who dies is removed from the same and inscribed in the Hall of the Dead.
Special Descriptors:
Dark See – Soul can see in darkness without firelight. This is limited to warm and cool patterns. Soul can see living beings as red, undead as bluish, water is bluish, etc. Cannot read or see details without firelight.
Path – Soul can know direction underground and also detect new construction and many underground traps. Chance: 50%.
D6 Goblin/Dwarf Bonus – Any time that goblins and dwarves fight each gets a six-sided die throw and adds any result to STR spent in attack during a turn. This bonus is constant.
Immune to Paralysis – Elves are immune to spells and poisons which induce paralyzing effects.
Ignore Spell – Once per day Faeries or a soul they choose can ignore any spell or magic effect. Chance: 75%.
Law/Chaos Ally – Once per Maze, a monster or non-player soul of like alignment can be taken as a party ally. The ally will remain with the party until they exit the Maze unless attacked by a party member or otherwise noted in the adventure text or monster description. Chance:35%.
Hide – If any shadows or places of concealment exist in a room a Halfling can hide as though invisible (no movement). Chance: 70%, indefinite.
Silent Step – Pass silently any room or hall, nothing hears you! Chance : 70%.
Find Gold - Leprechauns can locate jewels and gold. Nearest room, even if invisible or hidden. Three uses of this power per Maze. Chance:80%.
Quake – With feet or bludgeon weapons, Giants can cause a thunderous quake in a hall or room. Three uses per Maze. Everyone except other Giants has a 50% chance (each, not collectively)of falling down and losing any chance of Orders for that Turn or the next, whichever is applied first. These rolls are made only if the Giant succeeds at his or her chance to cause Quake. Chance: 60%.
NOTE ON LANGUAGES – Any intelligent monster in a Maze with powers of speech have a 25% chance of knowing Common Tongue. Common is spoken by all player characters and humans. Any monster or Kindred lacking this talent will speak their own tongue but can be communicated with by like Kindred among the Book of Souls. For example, if an Elf is encountered by the party in a room, there is a 25% chance the Elf speaks Common. If the Elf does not speak common, a player’s Elf character can still communicate with the Elf in their special language. The Law/Chaos Ally ability is not dependent upon common language.
MAZES
The Mazes are a series of rooms, halls and doors. Rooms have a brief one or two word description noted during play.
Rooms hold monsters non-player characters to encounter and possibly fight, and Prizes and Treasures that characters can pick up and use or gain Experience Points (X.P.).
One or more rooms on a Maze level is an “entrance” and parties entering a level will begin in one of these.
One room in a Maze is the “exit” and characters in that room may quit the level to rest, calculate XP and regroup. If by chance a new player joins later games he or she can be given a character(s) or buy a new one with a point cost equal to that of any slain characters previously played. This option is only available to a new player.
No combat is possible in entrances or exits and no XP is to be had by waiting in them.
DOORS
Normal doors are noted as such. Unless having a key-lock, such doors can be opened and closed without magic.
Some doors are hidden, from one side or both. They can be made temporarily visible by magic or having someone come through the other side.
Only a limited number of characters can pass through a particular door during a Turn, and the limit varies from door to door.
The size of any door and whether or not it is locked by magical or normal means will be noted.
Any door may be locked by magic. A “lock” spell creates a magical field around the door which slowly dissipates. The dissipation can be sped up by using an “unlock” spell or by physically “jimmying” the door, as detailed in Orders.
PRIZES
Prizes are sometimes found in rooms. It is noted in the adventure what the Prize is and how much XP it is worth. Some of the prizes which can be found are:
Strength Potion – Temporary STR increase.
Healing Potion - Upon use all CON lost in a Turn is restored. If CON is at maximum, the potion will temporarily raise CON by 1.
Unknown Potion – To know what it does one can drink it or back in town have a sage or wizard identify it (for a price, of course!).
Magic Sword – Adds a six-sided die throw to STR in any Attack Orders. May have additional powers as noted.
Magic Armor – Adds 10 to CON. May have other powers, noted in the adventure.
Miscellaneous Magic Items - These can be used, with indeterminate effect.
Valuables - Jewels, gold and other valuable objects with no special qualities.
ORDERS
Each character being played can be given a number of Orders during a Turn, described in detail hereafter. However, there are some basic limits to how many orders can be performed in one Turn. These limits are:
1) One “speak” order.
2) Any number of “release” orders.
3) One “take” order.
4) One “minor” order- minor magic or use prize. Some prizes are always in use, such as a Magic Sword, and do not require Orders.
5) One “major” order- major magic, combat, jimmy, move, exit or quit.
Each character can potentially make all of these orders in a single Turn, depending on STR.
Orders are written out each Turn for each character and a brief record thus kept. In multi-player games, Orders are submitted secretly and revealed after every character has indicated orders and STR to be allotted where needed.
The format for descriptions of the orders below use the following abbreviations:
[character] C, followed by name. Example; [C.Galyfryd].
[prize] P. Designates prize in room. To take, release or use, write the item in your Order.
Example: You enter a room, a P may be indicated, though its nature is unknown until taken. In a player’s written order to take or use a prize it is written as follows- [C-Galyfryd T P] or [C-Galyfryd U P/Healing Potion].
[door] D + direction, “N”, “S”, “E” or “W”. Write any door Orders preceding this code- lock, unlock, jimmy, fire-ball or exit. Used in room description and in Orders.
Example: When you enter a room all doors except the one you came in (asterisked) are noted along, with the door’s STR. In a room description, square rooms are the standard and each wall will have a descriptor as to doors. In the case of walls with no door or a magically hidden door this descriptor is given: ------ [Moldy Library. DE 3, DS* 10, DN 7, ------]. This description means the characters came in by the south door, which has a STR of 10. A door of STR 3 is in the east wall, a door of STR 7 in the north, and the west wall is either doorless or has a hidden door. To issue a door Order, the character writes the order followed by the door. [C.TheekaTheBold. X DN]. That means Theeka leaves the room through the north door. Other orders are written differently, detailed in their descriptions.
[strength] A numerical allotment of STR expended by a character to do something. This can be from zero up to a character’s full STR. To use in a major or minor order (or both) STR allotment follows the Order.
Example: [C.TheekaTheBold, Take P 2, AM 3]. This order expresses that Theeka, a halfling female fighter, will expend 2 STR this turn to take the prize indicated in the room description. A monster [M] was in the room so Theeka used her remaining STR to join other party members in attacking it. That’s the A code.
[speech] Communication. Confined to 50 words per Order for brevity. Subject to language limitations. Written in quotation marks following a colon symbol.
Example: [C.TheWizardDern: “Ah, this Moldy Library may contain valuable books or useless rat bedding. I’ll lock the south door behind us. Anyone have a healing potion? Then I’ll see to using some magic to find whether the library has a hidden door in that empty wall!”
Now you know how to write some Orders. Let’s move onto the rules about the Orders themselves.
ORDERS
RELEASE -R [prize]
No STR required. No limit on release orders in a Turn. Item is dropped due to desire to do so or limits on Prizes carried.
TAKE – T [STR] [Prize or P]
Order specifies a character picking up a new prize or one dropped by another soul. If more than one character tries to pick up a prize, the one who expended the most STR gets it. In the case of a tie, no one takes it except through ordeal by arms, theft, or by magic. Otherwise it is a Contested Prize and is left in the room.
A character may carry any number of prizes found in a Maze but there is a limitation imposed (see the QUIT order in the Major Orders section).
USE - U [Prize]. Use a “use-me” prize.
U [Prize] [door] Use a “use me in a direction” prize.
U [Prize] [character] Use a “use me on a character” prize.
USE is a minor order and is limited to once per Turn. It requires no STR and specifies use of the designated prize, whether on oneself, others, or a door. All prizes are kept track of by the player(s). A prize cannot be used in the same Turn in which it is found. It is the only minor order that a Fighter may use, the others are magical in nature.
SPY ON CHARACTER OR MONSTER – H [STR] [character or monster]
This order is a minor magic spell which can only be used by a Magic User. The H character denotes “hidden”. The spell reveals attributes, actions and prizes carried by another character or monster. As a spell of minor clairvoyance it is not completely restricted as to distance- any monster or character the mage has encountered (“knows”) can be spied upon anywhere in the Maze, though in such cases it is only useful in the Maze Level the mage is in currently.
Not all monsters are subject to this magic and cannot be spied upon, detailed in the Circus of Monsters.
It does not require the use of STR to be used in a Turn. Spending STR on this Order may, however, make the effect last for two or more Turns.
REVEAL HIDDEN DOORS- V [STR]
This order is a minor magic spell and the domain only of Magic Users.
It reveals all hidden doors in the room. The number of Turns the door(s) will remain visible (and thus useable) is equal to the amount of STR expended plus one.
LOCK A DOOR- L [STR] [door]
Another minor magic spell which cannot be given as an order. by Fighters.
The spell will magically lock a door for a number of Turns equal the STR used by the Magic User in casting.
UNLOCK A DOOR- K [STR] [door]
This Order is a minor magic spell; it causes a door to come unlocked sooner than it would otherwise, by a number of Turns equal to the STR used, plus one.
MAJOR ORDERS
There are three categories of Major Orders:
Major Magic Spells
Major Combat Orders
Other Major Orders
Combat Orders may not be given in a Maze “entrance” or “exit” room. Major spells can be prepared in these rooms but not cast. The “exit” is the only room where a Quit Order can be given.
During Combat, either physical or magical, a character can allot any or all of his or her total STR to certain tasks, although only one Major Order of any classification can performed during one Turn.
Any character that is not asleep “defends” automatically with all the STR he or she has not already allocated to other tasks. In addition, other characters may allocate STR towards another character’s defense.
If the attack(s) on a character add up to more than that character’s defense, any extra hits are taken from the character’s CON. A zero CON score means the character has expired and will be inscribed in the Hall of the Dead!
If a character gives no Order to Speak or Release, he or she has twice the normal defense. Characters which are asleep have no defense whatsoever.
MAJOR MAGIC
PREPARE SPELL
Y B (Blast)
Y F (Fireball)
Y Z (Sleep)
These Orders are given by a Magic User to prepare the indicated Major Magic spell for later use. A Major spell must be prepared before it can be cast.
Preparing a spell costs a Magic User all the characters original STR.
Once prepared, the spell can be kept and “carried” indefinitely. A Magic User cannot have more than one Major spell prepared at the same time, and preparing a second one will cause the first one to fade away without any effect.
Holding a prepared Major spell does not interfere with casting Minor spells, which need no preparation. The player does not need to write STR allocation in this Order since it automatically uses all his or her original STR.
It should be noted the three Major spells here are beginning spells. More spells can be found in Menegrath in its lower Mazes and sometimes in town, at great price.
CAST A BLAST SPELL-
B [character]
As previously noted, “Blast” is a Major spell requiring advance preparation.
When used against a target, that enemy takes hits to CON equal the Magic User’s original STR. The spell damage cannot be deflected by the target’s defense, either by monsters or characters.
CAST A FIREBALL SPELL-
F [door]
F
Must be prepared in advance as a Major spell.
The F [door] Order is used to throw the spell through a specified door into an adjacent room, while the simple F Order causes the spell to go off in the same room as the caster.
When a fireball explodes, EVERY character or monster in the specified room takes ten hits to CON, ignoring defense. More than one fireball cast in the same Turn by other characters are not magically possible and do no additional damage.
Note that even if a fireball is aimed to go through a door, three factors can cause it explode in the caster’s room, anyway. 1) Not specifying a door in the character’s Order 2) If the specified door becomes, or remains, locked by Turn end, the fireball cannot pass through 3) Bad luck and poor aim!
CAST A SLEEP SPELL-
Z [character or monster]
The use of a Sleep spell is subject to other Major magic rules.
There is no natural defense against this spell. When cast, there is a 75% chance the target will fall sleep for the next 3 Turns. Sleeping characters and monsters cannot defend, and can be slain without any STR allocation if desired. All of their carried items are visible and can be taken away by others.
COMBAT ORDERS
All combat Orders can be given by Fighters or Magic Users anywhere except when in a Maze “entrance or “exit” room. Only one such order can be given in a Turn.
ATTACK ORDER-
A [STR] [character or monster].
This order indicates that the character physically attacks a specified target, using allocated STR. The attack can be mitigated in whole or in part by the target’s defense. This is the primary fighting Order.
AMBUSH ORDER-
A [STR] [door]
A character ordered to “ambush” waits by the specified door; if any character or monster enter the room the waiting character attacks with allocated STR.
If more than one target comes through the door, randomly choose one to be attacked by the character waiting “in ambush”.
GUARD ORDER-
G [STR]
G [STR] [character or monster]
G [STR] [door]
G [STR] [prize]
The “guard” orders allow a character to watch over something or someone- even himself – and attack if anything is done by another player’s character to affect the thing being guarded.
In the case of the G [STR] order, the character is “guarding” his or her self; this amounts to a counter-attack on someone who attacks the guarded as an automatic action, and works like a prepared spell as long as the character is on guard. It works the same way for other guard orders, which indicate what the character is watching over. If more than one character acts against a “guarding” character, randomly choose target for that Turn.
DEFEND ORDER-
D [STR] [character]
This order allows one character to shield and protect another by addind allocated STR to the defense of the indicated character. Unlike the guard orders it does not grant any automatic counter-attack; the “defend” merely allows one person to take some or all of the blows directed against another person.
OTHER MAJOR ORDERS
JIMMY a DOOR-
J [STR] [door]
Only fighters can “jimmy” a door. The order specifies that the character is allocating STR towards removing a “lock” spell on a door. While not as effective as an “unlock spell, it is the only way a Fighter can negate a “lock”.
EXIT a ROOM-
X [STR] [door]
X [STR] [door] [door]
This Order moves one’s character(s) from room to room. If one [door] is indicated it is a single move; if two [door]s indicated, it is a double move.
This order specifies that the character is attempting to leave a room through the indicated door. Each Turn has two movement phases so that, unless circumstances prevent it, any character can move through two doors on the same Turn.
Because each door allows only a specified number through on each of the two movement phases the characters who allocate the most STR to moving through smaller doors will be the ones who succeed. A tie is broken by random determination. In a double move, the same STR is applied to passing through each of the indicated doors.
If your move order fails in the first movement phase, it is attempted again in the second movement phase, and any second move order you may have given will be cancelled.
QUIT a LEVEL-
Q [prize]
Q
This order can be given to any character who is currently in an “exit” room to leave the Maze level altogether.
A SINGLE prize can be carried out of the Maze; all other prizes are automatically discarded. The chosen prize is written in the Quit Order (Q [magic sword], for example).
A character wishing to discard all prizes or who has no prizes may simply write the Q Order. Note here that some “prizes” are cursed. There is no way for a character taking a cursed prize to release it while in the Maze, but upon the Quit Order and exiting the Maze cursed prizes are shed and left in that Maze, probably to be retrieved by a monster and laid in waiting for other hapless adventurers!
There is a fun and exciting exception to the “single prize” rule! Any prize leaving a Maze is in a character’s permanent possession and can be carried into any Maze, and taken out again along with any new prize he or she may take upon quitting a new and completed Maze level. “Permanent” here is a relative term; any prize can be stolen from characters under a sleep spell. Barring that, though, a character in Menegrath could have as many as 9 prizes in the Ninth Maze—formidable indeed!
SEQUENCE OF EVENTS
Orders given to characters are executed in the following sequence.
1. Minor magic and jimmy-effect of lock is delayed
2. Release prizes
3. Take prizes
4. Combat and blast spells
5. Sleep spells.
6. First movement phase-including ambush
7. Second movement phase-including ambush
8. Lock spells take effect
9. Fireball spells
10. Use prizes-must be carried at start of turn.
11. Prepare major magic spells
12. Quit
Note on speech orders: If three exclamation marks are used, the character is shouting and may be heard beyond the room they are in.
EXPERIENCE (XP)
Upon quitting a Maze, XP is acquired as follows:
Monsters – All monsters or characters individually slain by a character yield full XP only to that player. In the case of “cooperative kills” the XP is equally divided among the characters fighting. Monsters killed while asleep give only half XP and are given one character who delivers the coup de grat. Monster and character XP is equal to the slain monster or character STR.
Prizes – Any prize successfully taken yields 100 XP to the character, even if dropped upon Quitting a Maze.
Treasure – The gold point value of any treasure taken in a Maze will convert directly to XP points. The dispersal and division of treasure is a matter to resolve between players in multi-participant games. It’s recommended that in the case of group finds a d6 is rolled among players with highest roll getting first pick and so on, ties being broken by a re-roll. Obviously failure to observe propriety in first picks can lead to a duel, so its best to be as equal and fair in loot dispersal as can be managed!
Using XP – XP can be tracked for records purposes but they may not be spent on improving any character until he or she Quits the Maze. Upon exiting Menegrath, XP can be applied as follows: for every 1000 XP a character gains, a player makes a 6 sided die throw. The resulting number(s) will be applied to STR or CON or both as results allow, the character applying these points to either or both, as indicated. The results of this singe die throw are all the points a character can allocate to character improvement until another 1000 XP is gained and a new die throw is made.
No STR or CON score can be improved beyond 30% of a character’s original score, and in the case of characters with already high STR and CON scores (like Ogres and Giants) their score in STR or CON can never exceed 99.
A word on dice: You will need a six sided die and a ten sided die. The latter are used as “percentile” dice. In those places in the rules where percentage chances are given, the player rolls a ten sided die twice, generating a random number from 1-100. If the result is equal to or below the percentage chance, success is won in whatever the character is trying to do.
THIS IS THE END OF THE RULES!
As you can see, there are enough options to provide great enjoyment suited to dungeon exploration and even facilitate a fair amount of player strategy and choices. These rules also permit many choices for multi-player games regarding alliance and cooperation between souls, like defending those in danger and trading prizes.
They also allow for character vs. character duels, whether due to conflicting motives or to take a coveted prize!
Let us move on to the methods of play these rules can permit.
SOLO PLAY
The player will create the Book of Souls as detailed earlier. Room descriptions and contents will be either read from a prepared text or using random generation tables provided for in another book. The Internet is also well stocked with random dungeon room generators and encounter tables by level. A reasonably intelligent player can easily tweak monsters to fit the STR/CON system in Menegrath, using the Kindred Table values as a starting place. Random treasure tables can be easily adapted and empowered using the prizes listed in here as a general guide and scaling to suit.
Solo Play does not allow for as much intrigue and speech exchanges, but the challenge remains for the solo player: exit the Ninth Maze with as many characters and prizes as possible! In solo games orders are written for characters as a matter of record keeping; obviously there are no secret orders.
Note that “solo play” does not preclude one additional player; if someone is available to run a “Play By Post” game for you or a snail mail game, all the better.
PLAY BY POST
These rules are suited to single or multi-player games using an electronic bulletin board or forum. In the latter, orders are written by each player concerning the character(s) that player controls and secretly submitted to the player running the game and revealing the Maze as it is explored. Once all orders are received by the game keeper, they are revealed in the forum and cannot be altered.
In a PBP game, room contents and descriptions can be prepared by the game keeper in advance or randomly generated.
SNAIL MAIL GAME
Works like a PBP game but orders and results/rooms are exchanged via the postal system. If this method is used, its advised that Turn Orders be sent in 3 at a time, with all Orders being resolved as the player(s) indicate unless something happens to disrupt or invalidate an Order, in which case the Turn in question and its Orders are not used.
No doubt it will be harder to find people who might enjoy a Snail Mail format of play. After all, adventures are nasty, uncomfortable things that can make one late for dinner! There was once a very large demand for Play by Mail games before the advent of the Internet and video game consoles. That demand has lessened now but there still be a few souls who could find it enjoyable, most convenient, and a welcome mailbox goody when results arrive! E-mail games are also an option.
TABLE TOP RPG
While not designed to fill a need where endless other game rules might suffice, people might be able to run Menegrath rules at the table. Their simplicity and element of surprise would be well lent to such game gatherings.
FARE WELL! There is nothing to add to these rules, so we leave you to them. All that remains is to leave you with an example of play. Town adventure is left to another book, as is the Monster Circus, hopefully published on the heels of this rule book. Good luck.
Errata: Luck Special Kindred Ability- Human characters can use luck thrice per Maze to change an succeed at an action they might otherwise fail. Examples are taking a prize, being first through a door, etc.
Notes: These rules make use of an old Flying Buffalo Play by Mail publication. They are intended for enjoyment, not commerce.
I apologize for the formatting and publishing errors. I will try and upload again with images.
The discerning eye will catch some errors and omissions. All are easy enough to sort out, but I will edit and revise the rules to eliminate errors.
If you have read these rules and have questions or feedback, please use the comment section or email me.
