starcross/starcross.txt

			THE SHIP FROM THE STARS
			      Dave Lebling
			     November, 1981


-Synopsis-

Space-based tracking radars discover a small asteroid (or huge
starship) hurtling into the solar system.  Although they don't know it,
the ship is an enormous gift and test sent by an advanced race to the
primitive cultures of the galactic arm.  The ship contains secrets which
wish to be discovered, but only by a race advanced enough (and clever
enough and lucky enough) to penetrate its mysteries.

The ultimate goal is to gain control of the ship's instruments and
thereby bring it into orbit around the Sun, so that it can be studied
and exploited.  The radar tracking makes clear that there is only a
limited amount of time available, as the orbit takes it through the
solar system almost perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic.

Further, control of the ship is vested in "magic" devices (keys, if you
will) which collectively activate the main control panel.  Each key is
obtained by solving a problem.

Other attempts have been made to stop the ship: our system is not the
first it has visited.  Relics of those attempts, including adventurers
or their descendants, remain aboard.  On the other hand, they may know
about how to obtain keys or even have some themselves.

The player is in the role of the "lucky" asteroid miner who is the only
earth-based ship with an orbit close enough to the cylinder's path to
have a chance to intercept it.

-Ship Layout-

The ship is an enormous cylinder (roughly -- it was obviously a hacked
up asteroid).  At one end are the engines, at the other the control
room.  Much of the interior is airspace.  Around the rim are four
docking ports, three of which are occupied when the Earth ship arrives! 
Main gangways run the length of the ship, main lifts near the docking
ports run from the outside rim to the airspace.  There are ring corridors
leading around the ship as well. The engine end of the airspace supports a
jungle environment which replenishes the air supply.  The center of the
jungle end sports the drive bubble (engine room), which is not visible
from the ground because of the jungle.  The center of the other end
sports the control bubble.  There is a fence midway to keep the jungle
at its end.

-Docking Ports-

There are four of these.  Two are already occupied by the ships of
previous adventurers, and one was destroyed (almost) by the blast-off of
a third.  Each port has flexible grapples which catch incoming ships,
deccelerate them and hold them.  Nearby is a port with airlock which is
opened by pushing the "earth" symbol in a stylized solar system.  In the
airlock is found the first key and a device which allows limited use of
the ship's computer.

-Keys-

The keys are translucent crystals of various colors.  To make the test
fair, one is found in your airlock.  Several others have already been
found by previous adventurers, and some of these are same color as your
airlock one (they crumble to dust when confronted with yours).

-Translator-

Ship has been listening to radio/TV broadcasts from Earth (that's how it
decided to come here).  Translator connects to central computer, which
watches and observes all goings on.  Doesn't work perfectly though, and
it's not omniscient.  Will answer some questions, but not all.  The
translator is somewhat fragile, and can get broken in a fight, for
example.

-Jungle-

You can gain access to the drive bubble by climbing trees (bubble is
invisible from floor).  No trees at control bubble end.  Drive bubble
will open into weightless area, but you can't push off with enough
impulse to get to control end.  Jump plus assist from several blasts
from the zap gun will be enough to get there (note that you thus can't
overuse the zap gun, as it has limited charges.  One of the keys
opens the control bubble.

-Aliens-

There were three previous attempts to take over the ship:

1) The Immortal.  A hugely long-lived alien, he still lives in his ship.
He looks like an enormous spider (but he isn't -- remember the square-
cube law).  The intent is that he should look fierce and nasty, but not
be. He knows a lot, may give you information and a key.
Profoundly bored, he has been here a long time.  You should give him
your entertainment cassettes.  He has a translator of his own.

2) The Savages.  These are descendents of a larger expedition which
contained both sexes.  The chieftain wears the ancient ruins of a
spacesuit, carries a key as a token.  If you are in a spacesuit as well
he will trade the key for your much more interesting spacesuit.  You can
also blow it and get him or his tribe to fight you.  Zap gun may destroy
key. He will also lead you into the ship in which his ancestors arrived,
and there you can find another key!  This ship is on the other side of
a more-or-less unmappable maze; unmappable because the young of this
species will steal anything you drop to aid in mapping.

3) The Departed.  This alien tried to get away after finding at least
one key.  He didn't make it.  The corpse is tethered to the ship. 
Perhaps he was waiting for another ship to take him off, or his companions
abandoned him.  He has a key.

-Teleportation Disks-

These flip to the other if something touches them.  They are activated
by pressure (e.g., dropping them) on one side (the red side). Whatever
is within their range is transported.  They are found hanging
side-by-side on the wall near the Force Shield.

-Force Shield-

Has four settings, lowest of which reveals a key imbedded in the field.
Place something on the shield at a middle setting, then put a T.D. on
the floor beneath.  Then set the shield to the highest setting, which
leaves the object unsupported, and it drops onto the T.D., transporting
it and the key to the other disk.

-Maintenance Mice-

These carry off any object left on the floor.  Can be found in the
Maintenance Center.  They go in and out of holes in walls, so you can't
follow them.  You can use the Teleportation Disks to get into the
maintenance center, though!  Just leave one somewhere and a mouse will
pick it up sooner or later.

-Zoo-

Most of the animals have died, escaped, or been released.  A hive of
rat-ants (name is self-explanatory) remains.  They build nests out of
junk, including a key they found somewhere.  If you break the nest,
they will rebuild it further away from you, but you can get the key
before they reuse it.

-Computer Room-

A non-working computer is here, which you can reactivate by plugging
a replacement board in; but be sure to power it off first or you fry
the board. The computer will extrude a key if you do the right thing
here.

-Observation Deck-

A clear key here produces a prism which you can see before you see the
key itself.

-Weapons Deck-

You find a zap gun here, which has an enormous recoil to it (you can
use it to propel you to the control room).  It has only a certain number
of charges, of course.  It also has a key in its barrel which tints the
blast its color.  None of the other weapons works.

-Engine Room-

-Maintenance Center-

Maintenance mice return here, and they drop anything they've picked up
that might not be real trash.  There is a rather full bin of such stuff,
since no one has checked it recently.  If you root around long enough
you will find a key, plus anything else you may have dropped that the mice
recovered.

-Dropshaft-

Most dropshafts (air conditioning?) are covered with an invulnerable
mesh.  One is not.  You must stop at each level going out you will
splat.

-Control Bubble-

Something nasty lives in it.  The normal exits are blocked.

-Control Panel-

This is very complicated.  Basically it a control panel for illiterates,
all symbolic.  There is a key for each control without which the control
won't activate.  The labelling is not even there until the keys are
inserted.  There are View Select controls, Speed select controls, a
Target Select board and viewer, and a Course Select board.  There is
also an execute key.  You have to figure out how to direct the ship into
a circular Earth orbit...