THE LORDS OF MIDNIGHT
(c)1984 Beyond
Author: Mike Singleton
-------------------------------INSTRUCTIONS REVISION 2-------
Preliminary Note:
The instructions below have been taken from the manual for the
Spectrum version with contributions by Chris Owen
(Nettverksgruppa, 5/10-94, www@nvg.unit.no) and others
incorporated. The description of the controls at the end of the
text have been changed to the Commodore 64 version. (These
controls were improved in the conversion.) Use of emulators to
run the program on the PC has been taken into account in the
text. Maps of Midnight are available on the Web, and are very
much necessary besides these instructions to play the game.
--------------------------------------------------
NOTE
When you are playing LOM on an emulator it helps if you set
it to a high speed setting to speed up the drawing of landscapes
and especially to make the nights shorter, as well as save/load
games much faster(in CCS64 for example, set the speed to 500%).
--------------------------------------------------
General Description
-------------------
Graphical Adventure/Strategy Game, with single key stroke
controls and an all-important "Save Game in Progress" feature.
Setting the stage
-----------------
We are in the Land of Midnight far to the North...
The aim of the game is to overthrow the evil witchking Doomdark
who controls the north half of the Land of Midnight from his
citadel of Ushgarak, thereby freeing the Land from the evil spell
of cold, the Ice Fear, that afflicts it, a spell cast by Doomdark
through his magical Ice Crown, and restore peace. Although the
odds aren't good, it is possible not only to defeat Doomdark, but
to wipe out his entire Iceguard army.
In order to do this you must assume the role of Luxor the
Moonprince, who has the power of vision and command over those
loyal to him by virtue of the Moon Ring which he wears and which
allows him to look through the eyes of the characters on his
side. He can then control many different allies even though they
may be spread across the land of Midnight. Also the Moon Ring
acts as a shield against the Ice Fear of Doomdark which saps
opposing armies' strenth, morale and courage and may even cause
them to desert to Doomdark's side. The closer a character or army
is to Luxor, the less will be the demoralizing effect of the Ice
Fear. There is only one disadvantage to wearing the Moon Ring:
Doomdark can sense the warmth of the Ring so he always knows the
precise whereabouts of the wearer.
At the start of the game you control 4 characters, Luxor the
Moonprince, Morkin (Luxor's Son), Corleth the Fey and Rorthron
the Wise. Using these Characters you must attempt to defeat
Doomdark. Morkin will be central in an attempt to destroy the Ice
Crown as only he is immune to the Ice Fear and can get close
enough to steal the crown without detection. In order to conquer
Ushgarak a large army must be amassed by recruiting the various
lords of the Free in the South of Midnight. Some characters found
represent and control large armies and can be recruited by using
already loyal characters. In a relatively short time it is then
possible to amass quite a large army. The Fey will also help but
must be persuaded by Corleth to join the cause.
The hopes of the Free will only be destoyed if Doomdark can
succeed in either killing both Morkin and Luxor, or by killing
Morkin and taking Luxor's citadel of Xajorkith. The computer
controls Doomdark with his 250,000 Iceguard warriors and the
effects of his dreaded Ice Fear.
How LOM Works
-------------
LOM boasts 4,000 locations and 32,000 different views. (There
are maps available.) The screen displays the eye view from the
location of the current character in the direction he/she is
facing. Whenever a character moves to a different location or
changes the direction he/she is facing, the screen updates to
show the new view.
The game proceeds by day or night. Your characters can move
during the day. The computer controls the other characters and
beings during the night. In the daytime you can move any or all
of the characters under your control, along with any armies they
control. The distance the characters can move depends on a
combination of the type of terrain they're moving across,
what race/category they are (Fey, etc.), their general health
plus whether they are walking or riding.
For game playability sake, each character has his own individual
"clock" and when he has exhausted his daylight hours, night will
fall for him and he will be unable to move again until dawn.
Other characters, however, will still be able to move until
they have exhausted their hours.
Whenever characters move N, S, E or W, they move a distance of
one league (3 miles/ 5 km). If they move diagonally (NE, SE, SW,
NW) they travel 1.4 leagues (4.5 miles/ 7 km). Therefore moving
diagonally takes more time and leaves less hours of daylight for
the rest of their journey. Once a character has used all his/her
daylight hours or engaged one of Doomdark's armies in battle, the
screen goes dark, indicating night. Outside exceptional circumst-
ances, that character cannot do anything until the next day.
Once you've moved all the characters you wish, press the 'Night'
key.
Entering night ends your turn and signals the beginning of
computer-controlled characters movement - in other words, the
opposing forces and also independent characters such as wild
creatures. There will be a pause while the computer does this,
and rumours of battles and other events may appear on the screen.
The outcome of any battles is only shown at dawn.
When night ends the message "Do you seek Dawn?" appears on the
screen. To begin the new day you must press the "Yes" key and
then you will begin your next turn. If you do not press the Night
key or the Yes key at the appropriate time, nothing further will
happen at all until you do! (There is no need for a Pause key.)
The People of Midnight
----------------------
The people of Midnight can be broken down into three basic
categories: the Foul, the Free and the Fey. The Foul consist of
Doomdark's Iceguard riders and warriors. There are some 250,000
of them and none can be recruited to your cause.
There are numerous Lords of the Free. Generally, these can be
located at citadels in the south of Midnight and at some keeps.
Any of these Lords can be recruited by Luxor and usually by any
other recruited Lord. The Lords recruited from keeps have smaller
armies and are less useful in fights than those from Citadels.
The Fey live exclusively in the forests; they don't like to
meddle in the affairs of the Free but don't have any great love
for Doomdark. They can really only be rallied by other Fey, such
as Corleth. The Fey can move through forests far faster than any
other characters in Midnight. It's also worth noting that
Doomdark's armies tend to avoid venturing into forests.
Though Doomdark holds the north of Midnight, there are a few
Lords who remain Free in that region, but they have to be
recruited early on in the game otherwise Doomdark will overrun
them. Of these, the Lord of Dreams (a Fey) is one of the more
useful, as is the Lord of Gloom (a Free Lord). Other recruitable
characters who can help overthrow Doomdark include another one of
the Wise, a Dragon, a Skulkrin and the Utarg of Utarg. The latter
is not aligned to either side, being a true neutral, but can be
persuaded to fight against Doomdark by Luxor. However, if the
Ice Fear gets too strong he may desert and join the enemy.
Finally, Midnight is not a land without its fair share of danger-
ous wild animals. Wolves, Dragons and wild Skulkrin can sometimes
get the better of the lone traveller.
The Strategy
------------
The game begins at the Tower of the Moon, in the Forest of
Shadows (western Midnight - find on the map!). From there the
defeat of Doomdark can be obtained by reaching either one of two
quite different objectives:
1: Destroy the Ice Crown, the source of Doomdark's power. This
is located in the Tower of Doom near and north-west of the
Citadel of Ushgarak, Doomdark's stronghold on the Plains of
Despair in the north (see map).
2: Take military control of Doomdark's home citadel of Ushgarak.
The first task can only be achieved by Morkin. This task is more
like an adventure and places the emphasis on stealth rather than
military might.
The second task requires many lords, complete with armies, to be
recruited. The full-scale military campaign is the more difficult
and time-consuming of the two tasks. However, the flexibility of
LOM allows the player to adjust strategies at a moment's notice.
For Doomdark to win (controlled by the computer), he must reach
two of three objectives of his own:
1. Kill Morkin - as long as Morkin is alive the game continues.
2. Kill Luxor OR
capture the southern Citadel of Xajorkith, Luxor's base deep
in the south of the Land of the Free (see map).
Should Luxor be killed, the player loses control over all other
recruited (allied) characters save Morkin. Such a situation can
only be remedied by Morkin retrieving the Moon Ring from the site
where Luxor fell and put on the ring in order to gain its powers.
Unfortunately, as soon as Morkin puts on the Ring, the ring
radiates warmth in order to ease the Ice Fear and Doomdark can
sense thereby its wearer's location. Doomdark is then immediately
aware of his whereabouts, thus making Morkin's quest for the Ice
Crown virtually impossible, and thus the war is lost for the Free.
It is best to start the game trying to achieve both Luxor's
objectives above in case one strategy goes wrong:
*******Objective No. 1: Destroy the Ice Crown
Morkin will be central in this objective, as only he is immune
to the Ice Fear and can get close enough to steal it without
detection.
The best way for Morkin to approach the Tower of Doom is along
the western edge of the map. Farflame the Dragon and Fawkrin the
Skulrin can aid Morkin in his quest and both of them can be found
in this region. Farflame can be found at the Tower of Dodrak in
the Mountains of Dodrak, while Fawkrin is usually to be found in
the Plains of the Moon (a good place to look is Moon Henge). It's
also worth going to the Forest of Lothoril to recruit Lord
Lotheril (not to be confused with Lord Athoril!), who can provide
a small army to protect Morkin.
The final journey to the Tower of Doom must be made by Morkin
alone, as any armies that follow him risk being spotted by
Doomdark and putting the mission in jeopardy. When controlling
Morkin, it is a good idea to avoid fighting anything, as this
would put Morkin in danger.
*******Objective No. 2: Conquer Ushgarak
In order to accomplish this second objective the key role is
Luxor the Moonprince. When embarking on such a strategy of
conquest, it is best to recruit as many lords and armies as
possible in the South and West of Midnight. The Fey will help but
must be persuaded by Corleth to join the cause. Also, it is
impossible to defend each citadel and keep against Doomdark, so
for much of the game you will have to let him capture them.
However, this has the bonus of splitting up and weakening
Doomdark's army as it becomes dispersed over a wide area.
The best strategy for quickly recruiting a large number of lords
and armies is to split up your characters and send them in
different directions. As you recruit more characters they can
recruit other characters. In this way, you can sweep the south of
Midnight for characters and armies in a matter of a few days at
most.
When you feel you've recruited enough Lords and armies, choose a
rendezvous point (a good one is the Citadel of Ithrorn on the
Plains of Ithril). Rest all your characters and then push on to
Ushgarak, making sure that you rest frequently so that they're
in top condition. Also spend some time reorganizing your armies
so that the bravest Lords have the biggest armies. Once you are
completely rested and organized, you're ready for the final
assault on Doomdark.
If you're after a quick military victory, Xajorkith will have to
be abandoned. A sizeable force is needed to defend it, and
leaving such an army behind would seriously weaken your effectiv-
eness when fighting through to Ushgarak. However, as Doomdark
takes more and more of Midnight, the Ice Fear grows stronger, so
you may not want to abandon all citadels.
Battle
------
Minor skirmishes between individuals can take place at any time
and are immediately resolved. Major battles between armies,
however, are not decided until the following dawn. You cannot
move an army into the same location as an unfriendly army - such
a decision is always a special option that you must take in the
Choose menu that appears. Some commanders may be so afraid
that the Choose menu will not appear.
Two options can be used to move an army onto unfriendly soil:
1. Attack - go straight into battle.
2. Approach - go forward under a flag of truce. Using this you
may be able to rally the other commander to your cause. However,
if he ignores your flag of truce and attacks you anyway, you will
be at a disadvantage in the battle.
Once battle has been joined, you cannot move until the following
day. You can, however, move other characters into the battle area
to join in the fighting. At dawn you will discover the battle's
outcome. If the enemy has lost, his armies will have been
destroyed or scattered, leaving you in possession of the field of
battle. If he wins, your characters (if they are still alive)
will themselves be scattered, bereft of troops. If the battle
continues, you can move your commanders away that dawn or leave
them there to continue the struggle.
Features of the Landscape: [Images are available on the Web]
-----------------------------------------------------------
* Army A friendly army will offer no hindrance to the
traveller but a hostile army should be avoided or
engaged in battle.
* Cavern Can provide shelter from the weather or enemy, but it
may have already done so for fouler creatures.
* Citadel A strongly fortified city which may harbour friendly
or enemy forces. Storming a citadel is a hard task.
* Down Slow down travellers slighly and may hide unseen
dangers ahead.
* Forest Home of the magical Fey. Movement through a forest
slows down all but the Fey.
* Frozen These surround the land of Midnight. They cannot be
Wastes crossed by anybody.
* Henge Possess strange powers which may help or hinder an
army.
* Keep The fortress of a minor Lord. They cannot resist a
determined assault from an enemy for very long.
* Lake Often magical, these can have powers to revive and
heal those who oppose Doomdark.
* Lith Ancient standing stones, often with strange magical
powers.
* Mountains Moving across a range of mountains takes many hours
and leaves you exhausted.
* Ruin Abandoned fortresses of long-forgotten wars. May
harbour dark creatures or lost treasures.
* Snowhall Large structures which offer shelter to hundreds if
need be.
* Tower The refuges of the Wise. Although impregnable, help
may be sought at these - it may not always be granted
though.
* Village Can offer warmth and shelter if the people prove
friendly.
Selecting a Character
---------------------
You can select any of the initial 4 characters by pressing their
own specific key (see below). When selected, the display will
switch immediately to that character's point of view.
To select other characters which you have rallied to your cause
later in the game, you must press the 'Select' key and choose the
character.
Controlling a Character
-----------------------
Unlike ordinary adventures, LOM does not use text descriptions
and a parser. Instead, you have four basic options, each
available at the press of a single key:
1. Look - you will see a view of the landscape which the char-
acter is seeing. You can turn the character to look in
another direction by pressing one of the compass keys
along the top row of the keyboard.
2. Move - the character will move forward in the direction he was
last looking. When he reaches his new location, he will
continue looking in that direction and a new panorama
will appear. Characters cannot move during night, nor
can they move into the surrounding Frozen Wastes. Other
factors, such as exhaustion or cowardice, may also
restrict movement.
3. Choose - you will be presented with a list of options and the
keys you must press to obtain each. The options
available will depend upon the situation the character
finds himself in but they also reflect the particular
personality of the character - so a greedy character
will not become generous, for example, nor a coward
do brave deeds.
4. Think - check person/place/battle/armies - gives a run-down
on the personality of the current character. Beware -
some personalities may change as events unfold! By
pressing the 'Think' key again you get the battles and
armies conditions of the various characters.
CONTROLS (C-64)
Character Control Keys:
-----------------------
1-8 Look in direction (N-NE-E-SE-S-SW-W-NW)
Space Bar Move in current direction (sends to Choose
menu if you can't move until you choose)
<- (back arrow) Back to Look in current direction from Think
screens
Return Think - Examine selected character/battles
Restore Choose Menu
INST/DEL Go to Select Character Mode
Other Keys:
----------
0 (zero) Night (end turn)
Y Yes (as when dawn appears)
N No
S Save Game to tape (*)
L Load Game from tape (*)
(*) Check your emulator! - you may need a blank tape - saving
games is a critical function. You get an 84 Kb tap file with
CCS64. Run/Stop key allows skipping verify of saved file
(unecessary in an emulation setting).
Specific Characters Selection Keys:
-----------------------------------
F1 Luxor the Moonprince
F3 Morkin
F5 Corleth the Fey
F7 Rorthron the Wise
In Select Character Mode (through the Select key above):
----------------------------------Initial List:
C Luxor the Moonprince
V Morkin
B Corleth the Fey
N Rorthron the Wise
--------------------------Additional (Max) Possible Listing:
A Lord Athoril
D Lord Herath
E The Lord of Shadows
F Lord Mitharg
G The Utarg of Utarg
H Fawkrin the Skulkrin
I Lord Rorath
J Lorgrim the Wise
K Farflame the Dragonlord
L ----? (may not be used)
M ----? (may not be used)
O Lord Trorn
P The Lord of Morning
Q Thrimrath the Fey
R The Lord of Lothoril
S Lord Blood
T Korinel the Fey
U Lord Brith
W The Lord of Whispers
X ----? (may not be used)
Y The Lord of Thrall
Z ----? (may not be used)
1 The Lord of Gard
2 The Lord of Marakith
3 The Lord of Xajorkith
4 The Lord of Gloom (Free)
5 The Lord of Shimeril
6 The Lord of Kumar
7 The Lord of Ithrorn
8 The Lord of Dawn
9 The Lord of Dreams (Fey)
0 The Lord of Dregrim
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Included in the original box:
-------------------
Booklet text (this text minus additional info)
Map of Midnight (which can be found on the Web containing minute
details...)
-------------------------------------------------
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TIPS
The simplest way always seems to be to send Morkin north to find
Farflame the Dragonlord and send the two of them straight to
Ushgarak. Farflame can usually manage to wipe out the few armies
they meet en-route and them can destroy the Ice Crown when they
get there.
Alternatively, the longer (and far more entertaining way) is to
split your four main characters up at the start, each going in
a different direction and recruiting as many people as possible
then sending them all south to Xajorkith to wait for the enemy
to arrive. You may want to leave the Northern Fey at home rather
than send them south, so that you have a large, spare army left
for later use. Don't bother trying to defend individual citadels,
as you'll usually lose (take as many troops as you can and run
before the enemy arrives).
Try to recruit Lord Blood within the first few moves and leave
him at his keep. He will delay the oncoming armies giving the
rest of the characters time to get going (you may want to pull
him out before his army gets completely wiped out, as he's a
very useful commander to have around - ie. he doesn't get scared
easily, unlike some).
You'll have to pick the route they each take fairly carefully,
as the main characters have limits on who they can recruit.
Once Doomdark's troops arrive at Xajorkith you will have a number
of rather large battles, but should win them all (Doomdark's
armies are usually outnumbered). After the onslaught stops, send
your armies, coordinating with the Northern Fey, north (reclaim-
ing keeps, etc. as you go) and fight your way into Ushgarak,
meeting up with the Northern Fey when you get there.
-----------------------------------------
NOTABLE FEATURES
This game was a great hit on the Spectrum. It was the first game
to use 'Landscaping' to generate the view of the world from the
perspective each of the characters under your control.
SEQUELS/PREQUELS
Followed by Doomdark's Revenge which uses similar control
methods. Was supposed to be the first part of a trilogy but part
3 (The Eye of the Moon) was never completed (although some work
had reportedly been done on it).
Around 1994 "Lords of Midnight: The Citadel" was released for
the PC, this did not have the same scenario as Eye of the Moon
was supposed to have, and uses a further advanced form of
Landscaping (more like that found in Midwinter). The story does
continue on from Doomdark's Revenge.
LOM, though, can still cut the mustard to this day... May 2000.
Mike Singleton designed also "War in Middle Earth" a couple of
years after Lords of Midnight and Doomdark's Revenge.
Comments
"One of the greatest games ever"
Rating
10/10 (CRASH #7, August 1984)
Now
Although 16 years old by now, still a superb game.
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