The Abbey

The Abbey is a much talked about place. When one says The Abbey
it can be only one that they speak of, the Abbey of Montglane. Since you
were a child your teachers have talked of it. It is as if it was the center
of the Universe. So when you heard that it was destroyed by fire, you and all
who heard were driven to tears. When the King and Pope call for you to help
salvage some of the treasures, and you hear that the damage isn't as bad as
thought, you are much relieved. At least until you begin to remember some of
the childhood stories about the place. You wonder, if the Abbey isn't badly
damaged by fire, why did everyone leave in such a big hurry? And what really
happened the night of the fire? The peasants talk of fire falling from the sky
and a terrible wailing. Also in the town itself they warn you of a horror that
stalks the halls of the Abbey. Of course, stories like this are always being
told about extremely old buildings and the Abbey is close to 400 years old.
Some of the works in the huge library are of that age and older. And it may be
there that you will locate the clues to the location of the treasures.
NOBODY has EVER been in the library other than the librarian. When a book was
needed one asked the librarian to get it and it was brought downstairs.
The obvious object of the game is to find the ten treasures but there are many
other things to do.
The Abbey has a much more enhanced parser than did Hampton Manor.It will accept
full sentences such as GET THE BALL, TAKE BALL or any logical variation. If you
need help at any time type "HELP". This will give you a list of all verbs and
a short tutorial on using the game.
The Abbey doesn't have a score. Instead it uses "RANK". "SCORE" will also give
you the rank. The first three of the seven ranks are:
(in the order from lowest to highest)
novice,
apprentice,
the hunted,
...?,
...?,
...?,
...?.
Check your rank from time to time to see if you are making progress. For
example, if after a flurry of activity your rank slips from apprentice to
novice, then you have done poorly. Often you can correct this from within the
game but sometimes you must restore to an earlier save...for example, if a
treasure is destroyed. Remember to save before doing anything dangerous. Also
save often because danger lurks around every corner. Advancing to the next
rank is often a long and involved process.
If you are stuck type "HINT" to get a subtle hint of how to proceed to the
next rank. Since the later ranks are long and complex, the hints just point you
towards the right path.
The earlier ranks are easier. For example, advancing from novice to apprentice
just involves finding a treasure. However, finding this treasure involves
solving several puzzles. This hint would just give you an idea of where this
item is, but it is still up to you to figure out how to proceed. When your
rank changes, the computer will emit a small sound.
Good luck in your search for the truth!
Be sure to try Hampton Manor by the same author.