Moria manual
- Moria
- manual
The Dungeons of Moria
Robert Alan Koeneke
James E. Wilson
Moria may be copied and modified freely, but may
not be sold or marketed IN ANY FORM without the permis-
sion and written consent of the authors Robert Alan
Koeneke and James E. Wilson. We retain all copyrights
to this program, in either the original or modified
forms, and no violation, deletion, or change of the
copyright notice is allowed. Furthermore, we will have
no liability or responsibility to any user with respect
to loss or damage caused directly or indirectly by this
program.
June 25, 1994
The Dungeons of Moria
Robert Alan Koeneke
James E. Wilson
1. Introduction
The game of moria is a single player dungeon simulation. A
player may choose from a number of races and classes when creat-
ing a character, and then `run' that character over a period of
days, weeks, even months, attempting to win the game by defeating
the Balrog which lurks in the deeper levels.
The player will begin his adventure on the town level where he
may acquire supplies, weapons, armor, and magical devices by bar-
tering with various shop owners. After preparing for his adven-
ture, the player can descend into the dungeons of moria where
fantastic adventures await his coming!
Before beginning your first adventure, you should read this docu-
ment carefully. The game of moria is a complicated game, and
will require a dedicated player to win.
2. The Character
All characters have six main attributes which modify their basic
abilities. These six attributes, called stats, are strength,
intelligence, wisdom, dexterity, constitution, and charisma.
Stats may vary from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 18. At the
highest level, stats are further qualified by a number from zero
to one hundred, so that the highest value is actually 18/100. A
value of 18/100 can be thought of as equivalent to 19, and 18/00
(not actually used) is equivalent to 18. Because adventurers of
interest tend to be better than average characters, moria stats
will average about 13, and are further adjusted by race and
class. Some races are just naturally better at being certain
classes, as will be shown later.
In addition to the more visible stats, each character has certain
abilities which are mainly determined by his race, class, and
level, but are also modified by his stats. The abilities are
fighting, throwing/bows, saving throw, stealth, disarming, magi-
cal devices, perception, searching, and infravision.
Characters will be assigned an early history, with money and a
social class based on that history. Starting money is assigned
The Dungeons of Moria Page 2
based on history, charisma, and somewhat upon the average of a
character's stats. A character with below average stats will
receive extra money to help him survive the first adventure.
Each character will also have physical attributes such as race,
height, weight, sex, and a physical description. None of these,
except weight, play any part in the game other than to give the
player a "feeling" for his character. Weight is used for comput-
ing carrying capacity and also for bashing.
Finally, each character is assigned hit points based on their
race, class, and constitution. Spell casters will also receive
mana which is expended when casting spells. Mana is based on
Wisdom for Priests and Intelligence for Mages.
2.1. Character Stats
Strength
Strength is important in fighting with weapons and hand to
hand combat. A high strength can improve your chances of
hitting, and the amount of damage done with each hit. Char-
acters with low strengths may receive penalties. Strength
is also useful in tunneling, body and shield bashing, and in
carrying heavy items.
Intelligence
Intelligence is the prime stat of a mage, or magician. A
high intelligence increases a mage's chances of learning
spells, and it also increases the amount of mana a mage has.
No spell may be learned by mages with intelligences under 8.
Intelligence also modifies a character's chance of disarming
traps, picking locks, and using magic devices.
Wisdom
Wisdom is the prime stat of a priest. A high wisdom
increases the chance of receiving new spells from a priest's
deity, and it also increases the amount of mana a priest
has. No spell may be learned by priests with wisdom under
8. Wisdom also modifies a character's chance of resisting
magical spells cast upon his person.
Dexterity
Dexterity is a combination of agility and quickness. A high
dexterity may allow a character to get multiple blows with
lighter weapons, thus greatly increasing his kill power, and
may increase his chances of hitting with any weapon and
dodging blows from enemies. Dexterity is also useful in
picking locks, disarming traps, and protecting yourself from
pick pockets.
Constitution
Constitution is a character's ability to resist damage to
his body, and to recover from damage received. Therefore a
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character with a high constitution will receive more hit
points, and be more resistant to poisons.
Charisma
Charisma represents a character's personality, as well as
physical looks. A character with a high charisma will
receive better prices from store owners, whereas a character
with a very low charisma will be robbed blind. A high
charisma will also mean more starting money for the charac-
ter.
2.2. Character Sex
You may choose to be either a male or a female character. Only
height and weight are affected by a character's sex. Female
characters tend to be somewhat smaller and lighter than their
male counterparts. No adjustments to stats or abilities are made
because of the sex of a character. Female characters start out
with slightly more money than male characters to help offset the
weight penalty.
2.3. Character Abilities
Characters possess nine different abilities which can help them
to survive. The starting abilities of a character are based upon
race and class. Abilities may be adjusted by high or low stats,
and may increase with the level of the character.
Fighting
Fighting is the ability to hit and do damage with weapons or
fists. Normally a character gets a single blow from any
weapon, but if his dexterity and strength are high enough,
he may receive more blows per round with lighter weapons.
Strength and dexterity both modify the ability to hit an
opponent. This skill increases with the level of the char-
acter.
Throwing/Bows
Using ranged missile weapons and throwing objects is
included in this skill. Different stats apply to different
weapons, but this ability may modify the distance an object
is thrown/fired, the amount of damage done, and the ability
to hit a creature. This skill increases with the level of
the character.
Saving Throw
A Saving Throw is the ability of a character to resist the
effects of a spell cast on him by another person/creature.
This does not include spells cast on the player by his own
stupidity, such as quaffing a nasty potion. This ability
increases with the level of the character, but then most
high level creatures are better at casting spells, so it
The Dungeons of Moria Page 4
tends to even out. A high wisdom also increases this abil-
ity.
Stealth
The ability to move silently about is very useful. Charac-
ters with good stealth can usually surprise their opponents,
gaining the first blow. Also, creatures may fail to notice
a stealthy character entirely, allowing a player to avoid
certain fights. This skill is based entirely upon race and
class, and will never improve unless magically enhanced.
Disarming
Disarming is the ability to remove traps (safely), and
includes picking locks on traps and doors. A successful
disarming will gain the character some experience. A trap
must be found before it can be disarmed. Dexterity and
intelligence both modify the ability to disarm, and this
ability increases with the level of the character.
Using Magical Devices
Using a magical device such as a wand or staff requires
experience and knowledge. Spell users such as mages and
priests are therefore much better at using a magical device
than say a warrior. This skill is modified by intelligence,
and increases with the level of the character.
Perception
Perception is the ability to notice something without
actively seeking it out. This skill is based entirely upon
race and class, and will never improve unless magically
enhanced.
Searching
To search is to actively look for secret doors, floor traps,
and traps on chests. Rogues are the best at searching, but
mages, rangers, and priests are also good at it. This skill
is based entirely upon race and class, and will never
improve unless magically enhanced.
Infravision
Infravision is the ability to see heat sources. Since most
of the dungeon is cool or cold, infravision will not allow
the player to see walls and objects. Infravision will allow
a character to see any warm-blooded creatures up to a cer-
tain distance. This ability works equally well with or
without a light source. The majority of moria's creatures
are cold-blooded, and will not be detected unless lit up by
a light source. All non-human races have innate infravision
ability. Humans can gain infravision only if it is magi-
cally enhanced.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 5
2.4. Choosing A Race
There are eight different races that you can choose from in
moria. Some races are restricted as to what profession they may
be, and each race has its own adjustments to a character's stats
and abilities.
Human
The human is the base character, all other races are com-
pared to him. Humans can choose any class, and are average
at everything. Humans tend to go up levels faster than any
other race, because of their shorter life spans. No racial
adjustments occur to characters choosing human.
Half-Elf
Half-elves tend to be smarter and faster than a human, but
not as strong. Half-elves are slightly better at searching,
disarming, perception, stealth, and magic, but they are not
as good at hand weapons. Half-elves may choose any class.
Elf
Elves are better magicians then humans, but not as good at
fighting. They tend to be smarter and faster than either
humans or half-elves, and also have better wisdom. Elves
are better at searching, disarming, perception, stealth, and
magic, but they are not as good at hand weapons. Elves may
choose any class except Paladin.
Halfling
Halflings, or Hobbits, are very good at bows, throwing, and
have good saving throws. They also are very good at search-
ing, disarming, perception, and stealth; so they make excel-
lent thieves (but prefer to be called burglars...). They
will be much weaker than humans, and no good at bashing.
Halflings have fair infravision, so they can detect warm
creatures at a distance. Halflings can choose between being
a warrior, mage, or rogue.
Gnome
Gnomes are smaller than dwarfs, but larger than halflings.
They, like the halflings, live in the earth in burrow-like
homes. Gnomes are practical jokers, so if they can kill
something in a humorous way, so much the better. Gnomes
make excellent mages, and have very good saving throws.
They are good at searching, disarming, perception, and
stealth. They have lower strength than humans so they are
not very good at fighting with hand weapons. Gnomes have
fair infravision, so they can detect warm creatures at a
distance. A gnome may choose between being a warrior, mage,
priest, or rogue.
Dwarf
Dwarves are the headstrong miners and fighters of legend.
Since dungeons are the natural home of a dwarf, they are
The Dungeons of Moria Page 6
excellent choices for a warrior or priest. Dwarves tend to
be stronger and have higher constitutions, but are slower
and less intelligent than humans. Because they are so head-
strong and are somewhat wise, they resist spells which are
cast on them. Dwarves also have good infravision because
they live underground. They do have one big drawback
though. Dwarves are loudmouthed and proud, singing in loud
voices, arguing with themselves for no good reason, scream-
ing out challenges at imagined foes. In other words,
dwarves have a miserable stealth.
Half-Orc
Half-Orcs make excellent warriors, and decent priests, but
are terrible at magic. They are as bad as dwarves at
stealth, and horrible at searching, disarming, and percep-
tion. Half-Orcs are, let's face it, ugly. They tend to pay
more for goods in town. Half-Orcs do make good priests and
rogues, for the simple reason that Half-Orcs tend to have
great constitutions and lots of hit points.
Half-Troll
Half-Trolls are incredibly strong, and have the highest hit
points of any character race. They are also very stupid and
slow. They will make great warriors and iffy priests. They
are bad at searching, disarming, perception, and stealth.
They are so ugly that a Half-Orc grimaces in their presence.
They also happen to be fun to run...
2.4.1. Race Versus Skills and Stats
Stat, hit dice, and experience points per level modifications due
to race are listed in the following table.
Str Int Wis Dex Con Chr Hit Dice Rqd Exp/level
Human 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 +0%
Half-Elf -1 +1 0 +1 -1 +1 9 +10%
Elf -1 +2 +1 +1 -2 +1 8 +20%
Halfling -2 +2 +1 +3 +1 +1 6 +10%
Gnome -1 +2 0 +2 +1 -2 7 +25%
Dwarf +2 -3 +1 -2 +2 -3 9 +20%
Half-Orc +2 -1 0 0 +1 -4 10 +10%
Half-Troll +4 -4 -2 -4 +3 -6 12 +20%
Racial abilities as compared to each other, with 1 the lowest, or
worst, and 10 the highest, or best, are listed in the following
table.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 7
Disarm Search Stealth Percep Fight Bows Save Infra
Human 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 None
Half-Elf 6 7 7 6 4 6 6 20 feet
Elf 8 9 7 7 3 9 7 30 feet
Halfling 10 10 10 10 1 10 10 40 feet
Gnome 9 7 9 9 2 8 9 30 feet
Dwarf 6 8 3 5 9 5 8 50 feet
Half-Orc 3 5 3 2 8 3 3 30 feet
Half-Troll 1 1 1 1 10 1 1 30 feet
2.5. Choosing A Class
Once a race has been chosen, you will need to pick a class. Some
classes will not be available to certain races, for instance, a
Half-Troll cannot become a Paladin. For the first few adventures
it is suggested that you run a warrior or rogue. Spell casting
generally requires a more experienced player that is familiar
with survival techniques.
Warrior
A Warrior is a hack-and-slash character, who solves most of
his problems by cutting them to pieces, but will occasion-
ally fall back on the help of a magical device. His prime
stats are Strength and Constitution, and a good Dexterity
can really help at times. A Warrior will be good at Fight-
ing and Throwing/Bows, but bad at most other skills.
Mage
A Mage must live by his wits. He cannot hope to simply hack
his way through the dungeon, and so must therefore use his
magic to defeat, deceive, confuse, and escape. A mage is
not really complete without an assortment of magical devices
to use in addition to his spells. He can master the higher
level magical devices far easier than anyone else, and has
the best saving throw to resist effects of spells cast at
him. Intelligence and Dexterity are his primary stats.
There is no rule that says a mage cannot become a good
fighter, but spells are his true realm.
Priest
A Priest is a character of holy devotion. He explores the
dungeon only to destroy the evil that lurks within, and if
treasure just happens to fall into his pack, well, so much
more to the glory of his temple! A priest receives his
spells from a deity, and therefore does not choose which
spells he will learn. He is familiar with magical devices,
preferring to call them instruments of god, but Is not as
good as a mage in their use. Priests have good saving
throws, and make decent fighters, preferring blunt weapons
over edged ones. Wisdom and Charisma are the priest's
The Dungeons of Moria Page 8
primary stats.
Rogue
A Rogue is a character that prefers to live by his cunning,
but is capable of fighting his way out of a tight spot. He
is the master of traps and locks, no device being impossible
for him to overcome. A rogue has a high stealth allowing
him to sneak around many creatures without having to fight,
or sneak up and get the first blow. A rogue's perception is
higher than any other class, and many times he will notice a
trap or secret door before having to search. A rogue is
better than a warrior or paladin with magical devices, but
still can not rely on their performance. Rogues can also
learn a few spells, but not the powerful offensive spells
mages can use. A rogue's primary stats are Intelligence and
Dexterity.
Ranger
A Ranger is a warrior/mage. He is a good fighter, and the
best of the classes with a missile weapon such as a bow.
The ranger learns spells much more slowly than a mage, but
is capable of learning all but the most powerful spell.
Because a ranger is really a dual class character, more
experience is required for him to advance. A ranger has a
good stealth, good perception, good searching, a good saving
throw, and is good with magical devices. His primary stats
are Intelligence and Dexterity.
Paladin
A Paladin is a warrior/priest. He is a very good fighter,
second only to the warrior class, but not very good at mis-
sile weapons. He receives prayers at a slower pace then the
priest, but can eventually learn all the prayers. Because a
paladin is really a dual class character, it requires more
experience to advance him. A paladin lacks much in the way
of abilities. He is poor at stealth, perception, searching,
and magical devices. He has a decent saving throw due to
his divine alliance. His primary stats are Strength and
Charisma.
2.5.1. Race Versus Class
The Dungeons of Moria Page 9
Warrior Mage Priest Rogue Ranger Paladin
Human Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Half-Elf Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Elf Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Halfling Yes Yes No Yes No No
Gnome Yes Yes Yes Yes No No
Dwarf Yes No Yes No No No
Half-Orc Yes No Yes Yes No No
Half-Troll Yes No Yes No No No
2.5.2. Class Versus Skills
Class abilities as compared to each other, with 1 as the lowest,
or worst, and 10 as the highest, or best are shown in the follow-
ing table.
Save Stea- Magic Extra
Fight Bows Throw lth Disarm Device Percep Search Exp/lev
Warrior 10 6 3 2 4 3 2 2 +0%
Mage 2 1 10 5 6 10 8 5 +30%
Priest 4 3 6 5 3 8 4 4 +20%
Rogue 8 9 7 10 10 6 10 10 +0%
Ranger 6 10 8 7 6 7 6 6 +40%
Paladin 9 5 4 2 2 4 2 2 +35%
3. Adventuring
After you have created your character, you will begin your moria
adventure. Symbols appearing on your screen will represent the
dungeon's walls, floor, objects, features, and creatures lurking
about. In order to direct your character through his adventure,
you will enter single character commands.
Moria symbols and commands each have a help section devoted to
them. You should review these sections before attempting an
adventure. Finally, a description of the town level and some
general help on adventuring are included.
4. Symbols On Your Map
Symbols on your map can be broken down into three categories:
Features of the dungeon such as walls, floor, doors, and traps;
objects which can be picked up such as treasure, weapons, magical
devices, etc; and creatures which may or may not move about the
dungeon, but are mostly harmful to your character's well-being.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 10
Some symbols can be in more than one category. Also note that
treasure may be embedded in a wall, and the wall must be removed
before the treasure can be picked up.
It will not be necessary to remember all of the symbols and their
meanings. A simple command, the `/', will identify any character
appearing on your map. See the section on commands for further
help.
Features
. A floor space, or hidden trap 1 Entrance to General Store
# A wall 2 Entrance to Armory
' An open door 3 Entrance to Weapon Smith
+ A closed door 4 Entrance to Temple
^ A trap 5 Entrance to Alchemy Shop
< A staircase up 6 Entrance to Magic Shop
> A staircase down : Obstructing rubble
; A loose floor stone An open pit (Blank)
% A mineral vein @ The character
Objects
! A flask or potion ? A scroll
" An amulet [ Hard armor
$ Money (Can be embedded) \ A hafted weapon
& A chest ] Misc. armor
( Soft armor _ A staff
) A shield { Missile (arrow, bolt, pebble)
* Gems (Can be embedded) | Sword or dagger
- A wand } Missile arm (Bow, X-bow, sling)
/ A pole-arm ~ Misc
= A ring , Food
s A skeleton
The Dungeons of Moria Page 11
Creatures
a Giant Ant A Giant Ant Lion
b Giant Bat B The Balrog
c Giant Centipede C Gelatinous Cube
d Dragon D Ancient Dragon
e Floating Eye E Elemental
f Giant Frog F Fly
g Golem G Ghost
h Harpy H Hobgoblin
i Icky-Thing I
j Jackal J Jelly
k Kobold K Killer Beetle
l Giant Louse L Lich
m Mold M Mummy
n Naga N
o Orc or Ogre O Ooze
p Human(oid) P Giant Human(oid)
q Quasit Q Quylthulg
r Rodent R Reptile
s Skeleton S Scorpion
t Giant Tick T Troll
u U Umber Hulk
v V Vampire
w Worm or Worm Mass W Wight or Wraith
x X Xorn
y Yeek Y Yeti
z Zombie Z
$ Creeping Coins , Mushroom Patch
5. Commands
All commands are entered by pressing a single key. Some commands
are capital or control characters, which require you to hold down
the shift or control key while pressing another key. As a spe-
cial feature, control keys may be entered in a single stroke, or
in two strokes, with a `^' character first.
There are two command sets: the original command set which is the
default, and the rogue like command set. The rogue like command
is generally more convenient, especially if you don't have a
keypad.
The following tables summarize the two command sets. Certain
commands may be preceded by an optional count, and certain com-
mands must be followed by a direction. These conditions are
indicated in the tables by `@' for an optional count, and `~' for
a direction. If a particular command requires additional key
strokes, then they will be prompted for.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 12
Original command summary.
a Aim and fire a wand @ B ~ Bash (object/creature)
b Browse a book C Change name
c ~ Close a door @ D ~ Disarm a trap/chest
d Drop an item E Eat some food
e Equipment list F Fill lamp with oil
f Fire/Throw an item G Gain new magic spells
i Inventory list L Locate with map
@ j ~ Jam a door with spike M Map shown reduced size
l ~ Look given direction @ R Rest for a period
m Magic spell casting S Search Mode
@ o ~ Open a door/chest @ T ~ Tunnel in a direction
p Pray V View scoreboard
q Quaff a potion = Set options
r Read a scroll ? Command quick reference
@ s Search for trap or door { Inscribe an object
t Take off an item @ - ~ Move without pickup
u Use a staff . ~ Run in direction
v Version, credits and manual / Identify a character
w Wear/Wield an item CTRL-K Quit the game
x Exchange weapon @ CTRL-P Repeat the last message
< Go up an up staircase CTRL-X Save character and quit
> Go down a down staircase @ ~ for movement
Rogue like command summary.
c ~ Close a door C Character description
d Drop an item @ D ~ Disarm a trap/chest
e Equipment list E Eat some food
@ f ~ Force/bash item/monster F Fill lamp with oil
i Inventory list G Gain new magic spells
m magic spell casting M Map shown reduced size
@ o ~ Open a door/chest P Peruse a book
p Pray Q Quit the game
q Quaff a potion @ R Rest for a period
r Read a scroll @ S ~ Spike a door
@ s Search for trap or door T Take off an item
t Throw an item V View scores
v Version, and manual W Where: locate self
w Wear/Wield an item X Exchange weapon
x ~ Examine surroundings Z Zap a staff
z Zap a wand # Search Mode
= Set options < Go up an up staircase
/ Identify a character > Go down a down stair
@ CTRL-P Previous message review { Inscribe an object
@ - ~ Move without pickup ? Type this page
@ CTRL ~ Tunnel in a direction CTRL-X Save game and exit
@ SHFT ~ Run in direction @ ~ for movement
The Dungeons of Moria Page 13
5.1. Special keys.
Certain commands may be entered at any time input is accepted.
The special character control-R, entered as a single key stroke,
will always refresh the screen. This may be used at any prompt
for input, and is otherwise ignored.
If you are playing on a UNIX or similar system, then there are
some additional special characters used by moria. The special
character control-C will interrupt moria, and ask if you really
want to die and quit the game. If you choose not to die, moria
merely continues as before, except that resting, running,
repeated commands, etc will be terminated. You can suspend the
game with control-Z, and return to the original command shell.
In this case, moria is not terminated, and may be restarted at
any time from the shell. Alternatively, the special command `!'
is available to run any normal shell command. When it is com-
plete, moria will restart.
For many input requests or queries, the special character ESCAPE
will abort the command. For the "-more-" message prompts, any of
SPACE, ESCAPE, RETURN (control-m), or LINEFEED (control-j) can be
used to continue after pausing to read the displayed message.
It is possible to give control character commands in two key
stroke, by typing a `^' followed by the appropriate letter of the
alphabet. This is useful when running moria in circumstances
where control characters are intercepted by some external pro-
cess, or by the operating system.
5.2. Direction.
For the original style command set, a direction is given by a
digit which is in the appropriate orientation on your keypad.
For the rogue like command set, a direction is given by one of
the letters `hykulnjb'. Again, the relative position of the keys
on the keyboard gives a clue as to the direction. The digit `5'
for the original commands, and the period `.' for rogue like com-
mands, is a null direction indicator. This is only allowed in a
movement command (to stay in one place) or in a look command (to
look in all directions).
Original Directions
| /
7 8 9
- 4 6 -
1 2 3
/ |
The Dungeons of Moria Page 14
Rogue-like Directions
| /
y k u
- h l -
b j n
/ |
Movement is accomplished by specifying a direction immediately.
Simply press the appropriate key and you character will move one
step in that direction. You can only move onto and through floor
spots, and only if they contain no creatures or obstructing
objects such as a closed door.
Other commands that require a direction will prompt for it.
Moving your character one step at a time can be time consuming
and boring, so a faster method has been supplied. For the origi-
nal style command set, by using the Run command `.', you may move
in a direction until something interesting happens. For
instance, by pressing the period key `.' followed by the direc-
tion 8, your character would continue to move up the screen, only
coming to a stop after at least one condition is satisfied. For
the rogue like command set, typing a shifted directional letter
will move you in that direction until something interesting hap-
pens. The stopping conditions are described more completely in
the run command description below.
5.3. Command counts.
Some commands can be executed a fixed number of times by preced-
ing them with a count. Counted commands will execute until the
count expires, or until you type any character, or until some-
thing significant happens, such as being attacked. Thus, a
counted command doesn't work to attack another creature. While
the command is being repeated, the number of times left to be
repeated will flash by on the command line at the bottom of the
screen.
To give a count to a command in the rogue like mode, type the
number in digits, then the command. A count of zero defaults to
a count of 99.
To give a count to a command in the original mode, type a `#',
followed by the digits. To count a movement command (which is
itself a digit), type a space after the number, and you will then
be prompted for the command.
Counted commands are very useful for searching or tunneling, as
The Dungeons of Moria Page 15
they automatically terminate on success, or if you are attacked.
You may also terminate a counted command, or a Run command, by
typing any character. This character is ignored, but it is
safest to use a SPACE or ESCAPE which are always ignored as com-
mands.
5.4. Selection of objects.
Many commands will also prompt for a particular object to be
used. For example, the command to read a scroll will ask you
which of the scrolls that you are carrying that you wish to read.
In such cases, the selection is made by typing a letter of the
alphabet; if you are selecting from your pack, you may also type
a digit to select the item whose inscription is that digit. The
prompt will indicate the possible letters, and will also allow
you to type the key `*', which causes all of the available
options to be described.
The particular object may be selected by an upper case or a lower
case letter. If lower case or a digit is used, the selection
takes place immediately. If upper case is used, then the partic-
ular option is described, and you are given the option of con-
firming or retracting that choice. Upper case selection is thus
safer, but requires an extra key stroke.
5.5. Command descriptions
In the following command descriptions, the original style key is
given. If the rogue like key for that command is different, then
it will be shown inside the braces following the command name.
B - Bash. {f - force}
The bash command includes breaking open doors and chests, or
bashing an opponent. Your bashing ability increases with
weight and strength. In addition, when bashing an opponent,
you will either perform a body bash, or, if wielding a
shield, perform a shield bash which is more effective.
Bashing a door can throw you off balance, but this will not
generally be a problem. Doors that have been jammed closed
with spikes can only be opened by bashing. Locked doors may
also be bashed open. Bashing a door open will permanently
break it.
Bashing a creature affects both you and the opponent.
Depending on your dexterity, you may or may not be thrown
off balance allowing free moves to your opponent. If the
bash is successful, your opponent may be thrown off balance,
thus giving you some free hits or a chance to run. Huge
creatures such as ancient dragons will be difficult or
impossible to bash successfully.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 16
A player automatically performs a shield bash instead of a
body bash, if he is currently wearing a shield. A shield
bash adds the damage of a shield to that of the bash, so it
is more effective. Size and material both affect the damage
that a shield will do.
You can apply a count to this command, but if you are thrown
off balance, the count will be reset straight away.
C - Print character (to screen or file).
This command allows the player to either display his charac-
ter on the terminal screen, or to print an entire character
info listing to a file. The character's history, equipment,
and inventory list are also included if you chose to print
it to a file.
D - Disarm a trap.
You can attempt to disarm floor traps, or trapped chests.
If you fail to disarm a trap, there is a chance that you
blunder and set it off. You can only disarm a trap on a
chest after finding it with the search command. This com-
mand can have a count.
E - Eat some food.
A character must eat occasionally to remain effective. As a
character grows hungry, a message will appear at the bottom
of the screen saying "Hungry". If a character remains
hungry long enough, he will become weak, eventually start
fainting, and finally die of starvation.
F - Fill a lamp or lantern with oil.
If your character is currently using a lamp for light, and
if he has a flask of oil in inventory, he may refill the
lamp by using this command. A lamp is capable of a maximum
of 15000 turns of light, and each flask has 7500 turns of
oil contained in it.
G - Gain new spells.
To actually learn new spells, you must use this command.
When you are able to learn some spells, the word "Study"
will appear on the status line at the bottom of the screen.
Mages, rogues, and rangers must have the magic books con-
taining new spells to be able to learn them. Priests and
Paladins are given their prayers by their gods, and hence do
not need a holy book before learning the prayers in it.
They do need the book in order to use the prayers.
L - Location on map. {W - where}
The location command allows you to look at all parts of the
current dungeon level. The displayed view of the dungeon is
shifted to bring your current position as close to the
center as possible. You may then shift the displayed map in
any of the eight possible directions. Each shift moves your
view point by one half screen. The top line displays a map
The Dungeons of Moria Page 17
section number, each map section having a height and width
one half that of the display, and indicates the direction of
the display from your current position. If you exit this
command while you are not on the display, then the display
is centered again.
M - Map shown reduced size.
This command will show the entire map, reduced by a factor
of nine, on the screen. Since nine places map into every
character on the screen, only the major dungeon features
will be visible. This is especially useful for finding
where the stairs are in relation to your current position.
It is also useful for identifying unexplored areas.
R - Rest for a number of turns.
You may rest one turn with the null movement command. Rest-
ing for longer periods of time is accomplished by using the
Rest command, followed by the number of turns you want to
rest your character. Resting will continue until the speci-
fied duration has expired, or something to wake the charac-
ter happens, such as a creature wandering by, or getting
hungry, or some disability like blindness expiring. It is
sometimes a good idea to rest a beat-up character until he
regains some of his hit points, but be sure to have plenty
of food if you rest often.
If you have accidentally entered in a rest period too large,
or change your mind about the resting period, you may wake
your character up by typing any character. Space is best,
since if the rest ends just before the character is typed,
the space is ignored as a command.
It is also possible to rest by typing the count first, and
using either the Rest or the null movement command.
If you type `*' for the rest count, your character will rest
until both hp and mana reach their maximum values. As
above, you will immediately stop resting if anything
interesting happens.
S - Search mode toggle. {#}
The Searching toggle will take you into and out of search
mode. When first pressed, the message "Searching" will
appear at the bottom of the screen. You are now taking two
turns for each command, one for the command and one turn to
search. This means that you are taking twice the time to
move about the dungeon, and therefore twice the food. If a
creature should happen by or attack you, search mode will
automatically shut off. You may also turn off search mode
by again pressing the `S' {or #} key.
T - Tunnel through rock. {control-}
Tunneling (Mining) is a very useful art. There are four
kinds of rock present in the dungeons of moria: Permanent
The Dungeons of Moria Page 18
Rock, Granite Rock, Magma Intrusion, and Quartz Veins. Per-
manent Rock is exactly that, permanent. Granite is very
hard, therefore hard to dig through, and contains no valu-
able metals. Magma and Quartz veins are softer and some-
times bear valuable metals and gems, shown as a `$' or a `*'
character. You can tell if the metal or gems are embedded
into the wall by trying to move onto them. If you can't
move over them, you'll have to dig them out. There is an
option which causes magma and quartz to be displayed dif-
ferently than other rock types.
Tunneling can be VERY difficult by hand, so when you dig be
sure to wield either a shovel or a pick. Magical shovels
and picks can be found which allow the wielder to dig much
faster than normal, and a good strength also helps.
Tunneling can have a count.
V - View scoreboard.
This command will display the contents of the score board on
the screen. On a multiuser system, typing `V' again will
show only those scores from the score board that are yours.
a - Aim a wand. {z - zap}
Wands must be aimed in a direction to be used. Wands are
magical devices and therefore use the Magical Devices abil-
ity of the player. They will either affect the first
object/creature encountered, or affect anything in a given
direction, depending upon the wand. An obstruction such as
a door or wall will generally stop the effects of a wand
from traveling further.
b - Browse a book. {P - peruse}
You can only read a book if you are of its realm. Therefore
a magic user could read a magic book, but not a holy book.
Warriors will not be able to read either kind of book. When
the browse command is used, all of the spells or prayers
contained therein are displayed, along with information such
as their level, the amount of mana used up in casting them,
and whether or not you know the spell or prayer. There are
a total of 31 different magical spells in four books, and 31
different prayers in four books.
c - Close a door.
Nonintelligent and certain other creatures will not be able
to open a door. Therefore shutting doors can be a life
saver. You must be adjacent to an open door, and you cannot
close broken doors. Bashing a door open will break it.
d - Drop an object from your inventory.
You can drop an object onto the floor beneath you if that
floor spot does not already contain an object. Doors and
traps are considered objects in this sense. If you have
several objects of the same kind, you will be prompted for
The Dungeons of Moria Page 19
dropping one or all of them. It is possible to directly
drop things which you are wielding or wearing.
e - Display a list of equipment being used.
Use the Equipment command to display a list of objects
currently being used by your character. Each object has a
specific place where it is placed, and that only one object
of each type may be used at any one time, excepting rings of
which two can be worn, one on each hand.
f - Fire/Throw an object/use a missile weapon. {t - throw}
You may throw any object carried by your character. Depend-
ing upon the weight of an object, it may travel across a
room or drop down beside you. If you throw an object such
as an arrow, only one will be used at a time.
If you throw at a creature, your chance of hitting the
creature is determined by your plusses to hit, your ability
at throwing, and the object's plusses to hit. Once the
creature is hit, the object may or may not do any actual
damage to it. Certain objects in the dungeon can do great
amounts of damage when thrown, but it's for you to figure
out the obscure ones. Oil flasks are considered to be lit
before thrown; therefore, they will do fire damage to a
creature if they hit it.
To use a bow with arrows, simply wield the bow and throw the
arrows. Extra plusses to damage and hitting are gained by
wielding the proper weapon and throwing the corresponding
ammo. A heavy crossbow with bolts for example, is a
killer...
i - Display a list of objects being carried.
This command displays a list of all objects being carried,
but not currently in use. You may carry up to 22 different
kinds of objects, not including those in your equipment
list. Depending upon your strength, you will be able carry
many identical objects before hitting your weight limit.
j - Jam a door with an iron spike. {S - spike}
Most humanoid and many intelligent creatures can simply open
a closed door, and can eventually get through a locked door.
Therefore you may spike a door in order to jam it. Each
spike used on a door will increase its strength, although
the more spikes you add, the less effect each additional
spike has. It is very easy to jam a door so much as to make
it impossible for your character to bash it down, so spike
doors wisely. The bigger a creature is, the easier it can
bash a door down. Therefore twenty or more spikes might be
necessary to slow down a dragon, where one spike would slow
down a kobold. This command can be counted.
l - Look in a direction. {x - examine}
The Look command is useful in identifying the exact type of
The Dungeons of Moria Page 20
object or creature shown on the screen. Also, if a creature
is on top of an object, the look command will describe both.
You can see creatures and objects up to 200 feet away (20
spaces). You may freely use the Look command without the
creatures getting a move on you.
Looking in a particular direction sees everything within a
cone of vision which just overlaps the cones of the two
adjacent directions. Looking with the null direction `5'
(or `.') sees everything which there is to be seen.
You are also able to access you monster memories with this
command. If you see a creature, you are prompted to ask if
you wish to see a short paragraph of information about your
experiences with that creature. See also the section on
being attacked.
m - Cast a magic spell.
To cast a spell, a character must have previously learned
it, and must also have in the inventory a magical book from
which the spell may be read. Each spell has a chance of
failure which starts out fairly large but decreases as a
character gains levels. If a character does not have enough
mana, the chance of failure is greatly increased, and he
gambles on losing a point of constitution. You will be
prompted for confirmation before trying to cast a spell when
you don't have enough mana. Since a character must read the
spell from a book, he cannot be blind or confused when cast-
ing a spell, and there must be some light present.
o - Open a door, chest, or lock.
To open an object such as a door or chest, you must use the
Open command. If the object is locked, the Open command
will attempt to pick the lock, based on your ability at
disarming. If an object is trapped and you open it, the
trap will be set off. This command can be counted, because
you may need several tries to get a locked door or chest
open.
p - Read a prayer.
To pay effectively, a character must have learned the
prayer, and must also have in the inventory a holy book from
which the prayer may be read. Each prayer has a chance of
being ignored which starts out fairly large but decreases as
a character gains levels. If a character does not have
enough mana, the chance of failure is greatly increased, and
he gambles on losing a point of constitution. You will be
prompted for confirmation before trying to pray when you
don't have enough mana. Since a character must read the
prayer from a book, he cannot be blind or confused when
praying, and there must be some light present.
q - Quaff a potion.
To drink a potion use the Quaff command. A potion affects
The Dungeons of Moria Page 21
the player in some manner. The effects of the potion may be
immediately noticed, or they may be subtle and unnoticed.
r - Read a scroll.
To read a scroll use the Read command. Most scroll spells
either affect the player or the area around the player; a
few cases such as identify scrolls act on other objects.
Two scrolls, the identify scroll and the recharge scroll,
have titles which can be read without setting them off, and
by pressing ESCAPE can be saved for future use.
s - Search general area one turn.
The Search command can be used to locate hidden traps and
secret doors about the player. More than a single turn of
searching will be required in most cases. You should always
search a chest before trying to open it because they are
generally trapped. This command can be counted, which is
useful if you are really sure of finding something eventu-
ally. A counted search ends as soon as anything is found.
t - Take off a piece of equipment. {T}
Use the Take Off command to remove an object from use, and
return it to your inventory. Occasionally you will run into
a cursed item which cannot be removed. Cursed items are
always bad, and can only be taken off after removing the
curse.
u - Use a staff. {Z - Zap}
The Use command will activate a staff. Like scrolls, most
staffs have an area effect. Because staffs are generally
more powerful than most other items, they are also harder to
use correctly.
v - Display current version of game.
The Version command displays the credits for the current
version of moria.
w - Wear or wield an item being carried.
To wear or wield an object in your inventory, use the
Wear/Wield command. If another object is already in use for
the same function, it is automatically removed first; if you
are wearing two rings, you are given a choice of which one
to remove. An object's bonuses cannot be gained until it is
worn or wielded.
x - Exchange primary and secondary weapons. {X}
A secondary weapon is any weapon which may be needed often.
Instead of searching through your inventory, you may use the
exchange command to keep the weapon ready. For instance, if
you wanted to use your bow most of the time, but needed a
sword for close combat, you could wield your sword, use the
exchange command to make it the secondary weapon, then wield
your bow. If the sword was suddenly needed, simply use the
exchange command to switch between the bow and the sword.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 22
/ - Identify a character shown on screen.
Use the identify command to find out what a character
displayed on the screen stands for. For instance, by press-
ing `/.', you can find out that the `.' stands for a floor
spot. When used with a creature, the identify command will
tell you only what class of creature the symbol stands for,
not the specific creature; therefore, use the look command
for this information.
If you identify the character for a creature in your monster
memory, you are also prompted to ask if you wish to see a
paragraph of information on those creatures identified by
the given character. Several creatures may be identified in
this way. Typing ESCAPE after the paragraph for any
creature will abort back to command level. See also the
section on being attacked.
? - Display a list of commands.
The ? command displays a quick reference help page on the
screen.
- - Move without pickup.
This is followed by a move command, and causes you to move
over any object without picking it up. You can associate a
count with this command.
= - Set options.
This is a free move, to set various moria options. The
available options are:
(1) Cut known corners when running. This is on by default, and
the only reason for switching it off would be if you had the
search flag on and wished to look for doors in the extremity
of every corner.
(2) Examine potential corners when running. This is on by
default, and allows you to run along an unknown curving cor-
ridor. If, however, you are running from a creature, you
may wish to switch this option off, because the creature
will cut the corner.
(3) Print self during a run. This is off by default, which
gives faster screen updating.
(4) Stop when map sector changes. This is off by default, but
can be switched on if you wish to stop running whenever a
new part of the dungeon appears in view.
(5) Treat open doors as empty space while running. This is off
by default, in which case you stop whenever you run up to an
open door.
(6) Prompt to pick up objects. This is off by default, in which
case stepping over an object automatically causes you to
The Dungeons of Moria Page 23
pick it up. With the option on, you get prompted in all
such cases with a description of the object to see if you
really want to take it.
(7) Rogue like command set. This option controls the command
set in use. It is off by default.
(8) Show weights in inventory. This is off by default: switch-
ing it on causes the inventory and equipment listings to
include the weight of all objects. This may be useful to
know if your pack is getting too heavy.
(9) Highlight and notice mineral seams. This is off by default.
Switching it on causes quartz and magma to be displayed as
`%' instead of `#'; also, it causes the look command to
treat them as interesting objects. This is handy when min-
ing. Setting this option does not immediately highlight all
minerals, but only those which are subsequently displayed.
To display all minerals, just move the map around a bit with
the `Where' (or `Locate') command.
(10)Beep for invalid character. This is on by default. When
on, the program will beep for most invalid characters, such
as trying to choose a spell that you haven't learned yet.
When off, there are no such beeps.
(11)Display rest/repeat counts. This is on by default. When
on, the program will progressively display the remaining
turns left while resting, and for repeated commands. For
those trying to play over a 2400 bps or less connection, or
for those playing on very slow microcomputers, turning this
off will make resting and repeated commands work much fas-
ter.
The setting of all these options persist in your savefile,
even after you die.
^P - Previous message.
The Control-P command will redisplay the last message
printed on the message line at the top of your screen. A
second such command will display all of the saved messages.
You may also give this command a count to specify the number
of previous messages to display. At present, only 22 mes-
sages are saved.
^K - Quit the game without saving. {Q}
To exit the game without saving your character (i.e. kill
him/her) use the Control-K command. Once exited in this
manner, your character is nonrecoverable.
^X - Save your character and exit the game.
To save your game so that it can be restarted later, use the
Control-X command. Save files will also be generated if the
game crashes due to a system error. When you die, a reduced
The Dungeons of Moria Page 24
save file is produced containing only your monster memory,
and your option settings.
{ - Inscribe an object.
This command can be used to inscribe any short string on an
object. Inscriptions are limited to twelve characters. The
inscription applies only to the particular object, it is not
automatically transferred to all similar objects. Under
certain circumstances, moria will itself inscribe objects:
if they have been discovered to be cursed or enchanted, or
if they have been sampled without being identified. In this
last case, moria does in fact carefully inscribe every such
item.
If the inscription on an item is a single digit, that digit
can be used to refer to it when using, wearing, or wielding
an item from your pack. For example, if you keep a pick in
your pack with the inscription 1, you can switch to the pick
by wielding item 1 without checking your full inventory list
to find out which item the pick is.
! - Shell out of game.
Use the Shell command `!' to temporarily exit the game to
execute UNIX or MSDOS commands. You may reenter the game by
typing exit to end the spawned process. This is not imple-
mented in the Macintosh version.
< - Go up an up staircase.
If you move onto an up staircase you may use the `<' command
to go up one level. There is always one staircase going up
on every level except for the town level (this does not mean
it's easy to find). Going up a staircase will always take
you to a new dungeon area except for the town level, which
remains the same for the duration of your character.
> - Go down a down staircase.
If you are on top of a down staircase you may use the `>'
command to go down one level. There are always two or three
staircases going down on each level, except the town level
which has only one. Going down will always take you to a
new dungeon area.
. - Move in direction. {shift}
The Run command will move you in the indicated direction
until either you have to make a choice as between two direc-
tions, or something interesting happens. There are options
which determine behavior at corners, and at screen boun-
daries. More precisely, the conditions which stop a run are
as follows:
(1) A creature appears on the screen, one already on the screen
moves, or a creature attacks you or casts a spell at you.
(2) You move next to an object, or a feature such as a door or
The Dungeons of Moria Page 25
trap.
(3) You come to the end of open space, or the end of a passage,
or a junction of passages, or a hole in a wall.
(4) Anything typed during a run causes the run to stop. The
character causing this to occur is ignored. It is best to
use a space, which is ignored as a command, just in case the
run stops just before you type the character.
(5) Various changes of state, such as recovery from fear or loss
of heroism, will stop a run.
Corners are more complex. A corner allows a choice between
adjacent rectangular and diagonal directions. If you can
see walls which ensure that the diagonal gives a faster
traversal, then action is determined by the "cut corners"
options. If it is set, then you move diagonally through the
corner. This gives you maximum speed (as is nice if you are
fleeing a hidden creature). On the other hand, this option
should not be set if you want more careful coverage (as when
you are searching) so that you take two moves through the
corner.
At a potential corner, where walls are not yet visible ahead
of the rectangular direction, the "examine corners" option
is considered. If set, you will move straight into the
corner, which will light up all the corner and so determine
where you can go from there. This allows you to follow
corners in new passages. If the option is not set, you
stop. This allows highly cautious running where you want to
stop at all potential choice points.
If you move off the screen while running, then a new section
of the dungeon is displayed and the run continues. However,
if the "stop when map changes" option is set, you will stop.
Again, this is an option for nervous players; after all,
there may be a dragon on the new screen.
6. The Town Level
The town level is where you will begin your adventure. The town
consists of six buildings, each with an entrance, some townspeo-
ple, and a wall which surrounds the town. The first time you are
in town it will be daytime, but you may return to find that dark-
ness has fallen. (Note that some spells may act differently in
the town level.)
6.1. Townspeople
The town contains many different kinds of people. There are the
street urchins, young children who will mob an adventurer for
money, and seem to come out of the woodwork when excited.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 26
Blubbering Idiots are a constant annoyance, but not harmful.
Public drunks wander about the town singing, and are of no threat
to anyone. Sneaky rogues hang about watching for a likely victim
to mug. And finally, what town would be complete without a swarm
of half-drunk warriors, who take offense or become annoyed just
for the fun of it.
Most of the townspeople should be avoided by the largest possible
distance when you wander from store to store. Fights will break
out though, so be prepared. Since your character grew up in this
world of intrigue, no experience is awarded for killing on the
town level.
6.2. Supplies
Your character will begin his adventure with some supplies
already on him. Use the Inventory `i' command to check what
these supplies are. It will be necessary to buy other supplies
before continuing into the dungeon, however, so be sure to enter
each of the stores.
6.3. Town Buildings
You may enter any of the stores, if they are open, and barter
with the owner for items you can afford. When bartering, you
enter prices you will pay (or accept) for some object. You can
either enter the absolute amount, or precede a number with a plus
or minus sign to give a positive or negative increment on your
previous offer. If you have previously given an increment or
decrement amount, you can just type RETURN, and the program will
use the last increment amount that you typed. But be warned that
the owners can easily be insulted, and may even throw you out for
a while if you insult them too often. To enter a store, simply
move onto the entrance represented by the numbers 1 through 6.
If you consistently bargain well in a store, that is, you reach
the final offer much more often than not, then the store owner
will eventually recognize that you are a superb haggler, and will
go directly to the final offer instead of haggling with you.
Items which cost less than 10 gold pieces do not count, as hag-
gling well with these items is usually either very easy or almost
impossible.
Once inside a store, the store inventory will appear on the
screen along with a set of options for your character. You may
browse the store's inventory if it takes more than one page to
display, and you may sell to, or purchase items from, his inven-
tory. You can execute your inventory and equipment commands to
see what you are carrying. Not shown with the options are the
wear, take off, and exchange commands which will also work, but
were excluded to keep the options simple.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 27
Stores do not always have everything in stock. As the game
progresses, they may get new items, so check from time to time.
Also, if you sell them an item, it may get sold to a customer
while you are adventuring, so don't always expect to be able to
get back everything you have sold.
Store owners will not buy harmful or useless items. If an object
is unidentified, they will pay you some base price for it. Once
they have bought it they will immediately identify the object.
If it is a good object, they will add it to their inventory. If
it was a bad bargain, they simply throw the item away. In any
case, you may receive some knowledge of the item if another is
encountered.
The General Store
The General Store sells foods, drinks, some clothing,
torches, lamps, oil, shovels, picks, and spikes. All of
these items, and some others, can be sold back to the Gen-
eral store for money. The entrance to the General Store is
a `1'.
The Armory
The Armory is where the town's armor is fashioned. All
sorts of protective gear may be bought and sold here. The
entrance to the Armory is a `2'.
The Weaponsmith's Shop
The Weaponsmith's Shop is where the town's weapons are
fashioned. Hand and missile weapons may be purchased and
sold here, along with arrows, bolts, and shots. The
entrance to the Weaponsmith's is a `3'.
The Temple
The Temple deals in healing and restoration potions, as well
as bless scrolls, word of recall scrolls, some approved pri-
estly weapons, etc. The entrance to the Temple is a `4'.
The Alchemy Shop
The Alchemy Shop deals in all manner of potions and scrolls.
The entrance to the Alchemy Shop is a `5'.
The Magic User's Shop
The Magic User's Shop is the most expensive of all the
stores. It deals in all sorts of rings, wands, amulets, and
staves. The entrance to the Magic Shop is a `6'.
7. Within The Dungeon
Once your character is adequately supplied with food, light,
armor, and weapons, he is ready to enter the dungeon. Move on
top of the `>' symbol and use the down `>' command. Your charac-
ter enters a maze of interconnecting staircases and finally
passes through a one-way door. He is now on the first level of
The Dungeons of Moria Page 28
the dungeon (50 feet), and must survive many horrible and chal-
lenging encounters to find the treasure lying about.
There are two sources for light once inside the dungeon: per-
manent light which has been magically placed within rooms, and a
light source carried by the player. If neither is present, the
character will be unable to map or see any attackers. Lack of
light will also affect searching, picking locks, and disarming.
A character must wield a torch or lamp in order to supply his own
light. Once a torch or lamp has only 50 or less turns left
before burning out, the message "Your light is growing faint"
will be displayed at random intervals. Once a torch is burnt
out, it is useless and can be dropped. A lamp or lantern can be
refilled with oil by using the Fill `F' command. You must of
course be carrying extra oil to refill a lantern.
8. Attacking and Being Attacked
Attacking is simple in moria. If you move into a creature, you
attack it. You can attack from a distance by firing a missile,
or by magical means such as aiming a wand. Creatures attack in
the same way; if they move into you, they attack you. Some
creatures can also cast spells from a distance, and others can
breathe fire or worse on you from a distance.
Creatures moving in walls can not be attacked by wands and other
magic attacks normally stopped by walls. You can attack a
creature in a wall normally though by trying to move into the
wall space containing the creature. However, in order to attack
an invisible creature in a wall, you must tunnel into the wall
containing the creature. If you just try to move into the wall,
you will bump your head and look quite silly.
If you are wielding a weapon, the damage for the weapon is used
when you hit a creature. Otherwise, you get two fist strikes.
Very strong creatures can do a lot of damage with their fists...
You may have a primary weapon, and a secondary weapon which is
kept on your belt or shoulder for immediate use. You can switch
between your primary and secondary weapons with the exchange com-
mand. Be sure to wield the proper weapon when fighting. Hitting
a dragon over the head with a bow will simply make him mad, and
get you killed.
Missile weapons, such as bows, can be wielded, and then the
proper missile, in this case an arrow, can be fired across the
room into a target. Missiles can be used without the proper mis-
sile weapon, but used together they have a greater range and do
far more damage.
Hits and misses are determined by ability to hit versus armor
class. A hit is a strike that does some damage; a miss may in
fact reach a target, but fails to do any damage. Higher armor
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classes make it harder to do damage, and so lead to more misses.
8.1. Monster Memories
There are hundreds of different creatures in the mines of moria,
many of which look the same on the screen. The exact species of
a creature can be discovered by looking at it. It is also very
difficult to keep track of the capabilities of various creatures.
Rather than forcing you to keep notes, moria automatically keeps
track of your experiences with a particular creature. This is
called the monster memory. You monster memory recalls the par-
ticular attacks of each creature which you have suffered, as well
as recalling if you have observed them to multiply or move errat-
ically, or drop treasure, or many other attributes.
If you have killed enough of a particular creature, or suffered
enough attacks, recalling the monster memory may also provide you
with information not otherwise available, such as a armor class
or hit dice. These are not explained, but may be useful to give
the relative danger of each creature. This memory can be passed
on to a new character even after you die, by means of a reduced
save file.
8.2. Your Weapon
Carrying a weapon in your backpack does you no good. You must
wield a weapon before it can be used in a fight. A secondary
weapon can be kept by wielding it and then using the exchange
command. A secondary weapon is not in use, simply ready to be
switched with the current weapon if needed.
Weapons have two main characteristics, their ability to hit and
their ability to do damage, expressed as `(+#,+#)'. A normal
weapon would be `(+0,+0)'. Many weapons in moria have magical
bonuses to hit and/or do damage. Some weapons are cursed, and
have penalties that hurt the player. Cursed weapons cannot be
unwielded until the curse is lifted.
Moria assumes that your youth in the rough environment near the
dungeons has taught you the relative merits of different weapons,
and displays as part of their description the damage dice which
define their capabilities. The ability to damage is added to the
dice roll for that weapon. The dice used for a given weapon is
displayed as `#d#'. The first number indicates how many dice to
roll, and the second indicates how many sides they have. A "2d6"
weapon will give damage from 2 to 12, plus any damage bonus. The
weight of a weapon is also a consideration. Heavy weapons may
hit harder, but they are also harder to use. Depending on your
strength and the weight of the weapon, you may get several hits
in one turn.
Missile booster weapons, such as bows, have their characteristics
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added to those of the missile used, if the proper weapon/missile
combination is used. Also, these weapons will multiply the base
damage of the missile by a number from 2 to 4, depending on the
strength of the weapon. This multiplier is displayed as `(x#)'.
Although you receive any magical bonuses an unidentified weapon
may possess when you wield it, those bonuses will not be added in
to the displayed values of to-hit and to-dam on your character
sheet. You must identify the weapon before the displayed values
reflect the real values used.
Finally, some rare weapons have special abilities. These are
called ego weapons, and are feared by great and meek. An ego
sword must be wielded to receive benefit of its abilities.
Special weapons are denoted by the following abbreviations:
DF - Defender.
A magical weapon that helps the wielder defend himself, thus
increasing his/her armor class, and protecting him/her
against damage from fire, frost, acid, lightning, and falls.
This weapon also will increase your stealth, let you see
invisible creatures, protect you from paralyzation attacks,
and help you regenerate hit points and mana faster. As a
result of the regeneration ability, you will use up food
faster than normal while wielding such a weapon.
FB - Frost Brand.
A magical weapon of ice that delivers a cold critical to
heat based creatures. It will inflict one and a half times
the normal damage when used against a heat based creature.
FT - Flame Tongue.
A magical weapon of flame that delivers a heat critical to
cold based creatures. It will inflict one and a half times
the normal damage when used against cold based or inflamm-
able creatures.
HA - Holy Avenger.
A Holy Avenger is one of the most powerful of weapons. A
Holy Avenger will increase your strength and your armor
class. This weapon will do extra damage when used against
evil and undead creatures, and will also give you the abil-
ity to see invisible creatures.
SA - Slay Animal.
A Slay Animal weapon is a special purpose weapon whose sole
intent is to destroy all the dangerous animals in the world.
An animal is any creature natural to the world. Therefore
an orc would not be an animal, but a giant snake would be.
This will inflict twice the normal amount of damage when
used against an animal.
SD - Slay Dragon.
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A Slay Dragon weapon is a special purpose weapon whose sole
intent is to destroy dragon-kind. Therefore, when used
against a dragon, the amount of damage done is four times
the normal amount.
SE - Slay Evil.
A Slay Evil weapon is a special purpose weapon whose sole
intent is to destroy all forms of evil. When used against
an evil creature, either alive or undead, the damage done
twice the normal amount.
SU - Slay Undead.
A Slay Undead weapon is a special purpose weapon whose sole
intent is to destroy all forms of undead. This weapon is
hated and feared by the intelligent undead, for a single
blow from this weapon will inflict three times the normal
amount of damage. This weapon also gives you the ability to
see invisible creatures, which is especially useful against
undead, since many of them are normally invisible.
8.3. Body and Shield Bashes
Weight is the primary factor in being able to bash something, but
strength plays a role too. After bashing, a character may be off
balance for several rounds depending upon his dexterity.
Doors can be broken down by bashing them. Once a door is bashed
open, it is forever useless and cannot be closed.
Chests too may be bashed open, but be warned that the careless
smashing of a chest often ruins the contents. Bashing open a
chest will not disarm any traps it may contain, but does allow
the strong and ignorant to see what is inside.
Finally, a creature may be bashed. If a shield is currently
being worn, the bash is a shield bash and will do more damage.
In either case, a bash may throw an opponent off balance for a
number of rounds, allowing a player to get in a free hit or more.
If the player is thrown off balance, his opponent may get free
hits on him. This is a risky attack.
8.4. Your Armor Class
Armor class is a number that describes the amount and the quality
of armor being worn. Armor class will generally run from about 0
to 60, but could become negative or greater than 60 in rare
cases.
The larger your armor class, the more protective it is. A nega-
tive armor class would actually help get you hit. Armor protects
you in three manners. One, it makes you harder to be hit for
damage. A hit for no damage is the same as a miss. Two, good
The Dungeons of Moria Page 32
armor will absorb some of the damage that your character would
have taken. An armor class of 30 would absorb 15% of any damage
meant for him. Three, acid damage is reduced by wearing body
armor. It is obvious that a high armor class is a must for sur-
viving the lower levels of moria.
Each piece of armor has an armor class adjustment, and a magical
bonus. Armor bought in town will have these values displayed
with its description. Armor that is found within the dungeon
must be identified before these values will be displayed. All
armor always has the base armor class displayed, to which the
bonus is added. It is always possible to figure this out anyway,
by watching the effect it has on your displayed armor class.
Armor class values are always displayed between a set of brackets
as `[#]' or `[#,+#]'. The first value is the armor class of the
item. The second number is the magical bonus of the item which
is only displayed if known, and will always have a sign preceding
the value. There are a few cases where the form `[+#]' is used,
meaning the object has no armor class, only a magical armor bonus
if worn. Body armor may also have a (-#) displayed in
parentheses; this is a penalty to hit, because the bulk of the
armor makes it more difficult to swing a weapon freely.
Some pieces of armor will possess special abilities denoted by
the following abbreviations:
RA - Resist Acid.
A character using such an object will take only one-third
normal damage from any acid thrown upon him. In addition,
armor so enchanted will resist the acid's effects and not be
damaged by it.
RC - Resist Cold.
A character using a resist cold object will take only one-
third damage from frost and cold.
RF - Resist Fire.
A character using a resist fire object will take only one-
third damage from heat and fire.
RL - Resist Lightning.
A character using a resist lightning object will take only
one-third damage from electrical attacks.
R - Resistance.
A character wearing armor with this ability will have resis-
tance to Acid, Cold, Fire, and Lightning as explained in
each part above.
8.5. Crowns
Some crowns also have special magical abilities that improve your
The Dungeons of Moria Page 33
chances in a battle.
Crown of Might
This is the great crown of the warriors. The wearer will
have an increased strength, dexterity, and constitution, and
will also be immune to any foe's attempt to slow or paralyze
him or her.
Crown of the Magi
This is the great crown of the wizards. The wearer will
have an increased intelligence, and will also be given
resistance against fire, frost, acid, and lightning.
Crown of Lordliness
This is the great crown of the priests. The wearer will
have an increased wisdom and charisma.
Crown of Seeing
This is the great crown of the rogues. The wearer will be
able to see even invisible creatures, and will have an
increased ability to locate traps and secret doors.
Crown of Regeneration
This crown will help you regenerate hit points and mana more
quickly than normal, allowing you to fight longer before
needing to rest. You will use of food faster than normal
while wearing this crown because of the regenerative
effects.
Crown of Beauty
This crown looks impressive, and will increase your
charisma, but is otherwise not useful.
9. Objects Found In The Dungeon
The mines are full of objects just waiting to be picked up and
used. How did they get there? Well, the main source for useful
items are all the foolish adventurers that proceeded into the
dungeon before you. They get killed, and the helpful creatures
scatter the various treasure throughout the dungeon. Most cursed
items are placed there by the joyful evil sorcerers, who enjoy a
good joke when it gets you killed.
You pick up objects by moving on top of them. You can carry up
to 22 different items in your backpack while wearing and wielding
many others. Although you are limited to 22 different items, you
may be carrying several items of each kind, restricted only by
the amount of weight your character can carry. Your weight limit
is determined by your strength. Only one object may occupy a
given floor location, which may or may not also contain one
creature. Doors, traps, and staircases are considered objects
for this purpose.
The Dungeons of Moria Page 34
If you try to carry more weight than your limit, you will move
more slowly than normal until you drop the extra weight. If
picking up an object would take you over your weight limit, then
you will be asked whether you really want to pick it up. It is a
good idea to leave the object alone if you are fleeing from a
monster.
Many objects found within the dungeon have special commands for
their use. Wands must be Aimed, staffs must be Used, scrolls
must be Read, and potions must be Quaffed. In any case, you must
first be able to carry an object before you can use it. Some
objects, such as chests, are very complex. Chests contain other
objects and may be trapped, and/or locked. Read the list of
player commands carefully for a further understanding of chests.
One item in particular will be discussed here. The scroll of
"Word-of-Recall" can be found within the dungeon, or bought at
the temple in town. It acts in two manners, depending upon your
current location. If read within the dungeon, it will teleport
you back to town. If read in town, it will teleport you back
down to the deepest level of the dungeon on which your character
has previously been. This makes the scroll very useful for get-
ting back to the deeper levels of moria. Once the scroll has
been read, it takes a while for the spell to act, so don't expect
it to save you in a crisis.
The game provides some automatic inscriptions to help you keep
track of your possessions. Wands and staves which are known to
be empty will be inscribed with "empty". Objects which have been
tried at least once, but haven't been identified yet will be
inscribed with "tried". Cursed objects are inscribed with
"damned". Also, occasionally you will notice that something in
your inventory or equipment list seems to be magical. High level
characters are much more likely to notice this than beginning
characters. When you do notice this, the item in question will
be inscribed with "magik".
And lastly, a final warning: not all objects are what they seem.
Skeletons lying peacefully about the dungeon have been known to
get up...
9.1. Cursed Objects
Some objects, mainly armor and weapons, have had curses laid upon
them. These horrible objects will look like any other normal
item, but will detract from your character's stats or abilities
if worn. They will also be impossible to remove until a remove
curse is done.
If you wear or wield a cursed item, you will immediately feel
something wrong. The item will also be inscribed "damned".
The Dungeons of Moria Page 35
9.2. Mining
Much of the treasure within the dungeon can be found only by min-
ing it out of the walls. Many rich strikes exist within each
level, but must be found and mined. Quartz veins are the
richest, yielding the most metals and gems, but magma veins will
have some hordes hidden within.
Mining is virtually impossible without a pick or shovel. Picks
and shovels have an additional magical ability expressed as
`(+#)'. The higher the number, the better the magical digging
ability of the tool. A pick or shovel also has plusses to hit
and damage, and can be used as a weapon.
When a vein of quartz or magma is located, the character should
wield his pick or shovel and begin digging out a section. When
that section is removed, he should locate another section of the
vein, and begin the process again. Since granite rock is much
harder to dig through, it is much faster to follow the vein
exactly and dig around the granite. There is an option for
highlighting magma and quartz.
If the character has a scroll or staff of treasure location, he
can immediately locate all strikes of treasure within a vein
shown on the screen. This makes mining much easier and more pro-
fitable.
It is sometimes possible to get a character trapped within the
dungeon by using various magical spells and items. So it is a
very good idea to always carry some kind of digging tool, even
when you are not planning on tunneling for treasure.
9.3. Staircases, Secret Doors, Passages, and Rooms
Staircases are the manner in which you get deeper, or climb out
of the dungeon. The symbols for the up and down staircases are
the same as the commands to use them. A `<' represents an up
staircase and a `>' represents a down staircase. You must move
your character over the staircase before you can use them.
Each level has at least one up staircase, and at least two down
staircases. There are no exceptions to this rule. You may have
trouble finding some well hidden secret doors, but the stairs are
there.
Many secret doors are used within the dungeon to confuse and
demoralize adventurers foolish enough to enter. But with some
luck, and lots of concentration, you can find these secret doors.
Secret doors will sometimes hide rooms or corridors, or even
entire sections of that level of the dungeon. Sometimes they
simply hide small empty closets or even dead ends.
Creatures in the dungeon will generally know and use these secret
The Dungeons of Moria Page 36
doors. If they leave one open, you will be able to go right
through it. If they close it behind them you will have to search
for the catch first. Once a secret door has been discovered by
you, it is drawn as a known door and no more searching will be
required to use it.
10. Winning The Game
Once your character has progressed into killing dragons with but
a mean glance and snap of his fingers, he may be ready to take on
the Balrog. The Balrog will appear on most levels after level
49, so don't go down there until you are ready for him.
The Balrog cannot be killed in some of the easier methods used on
normal creatures. Because of the Balrog's cunning, he will
teleport away to another level if a spell such as destruction is
used upon him, and the Balrog cannot be polymorphed, slept, con-
fused, or genocided. Magical spells like coldball are effective
against him, as are weapons, but he is difficult to kill, and if
allowed to escape to another level can heal himself.
If you should actually survive the attempt of killing the Balrog,
you will receive the status of WINNER. Since you have defeated
the toughest creature alive, your character is ready to retire
and cannot be saved. When you quit the game, your character
receives a surprise bonus score.
11. Upon Death and Dying
If your character falls below 0 hit points, he has died and can-
not be restored. A tombstone showing information about your
character will be displayed. You are also permitted to get a
record of your character, and all your equipment (identified)
either on the screen or in a file.
Your character will leave behind a reduced save file, which con-
tains only the monster memory and your option choices. It may be
restored, in which case the new character is generated exactly as
if the file was not there, but the new player will find his mon-
ster memory containing all the experience of past incarnations.
12. Wizards
There are rumors of moria Wizards which, if asked nicely, can
explain details of the moria game that seem complicated to
beginners.
