			SHADOW OF THE  B E A S T
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	|		     SHADOW OF THE BEAST		      |
	|	     		   FACT BOX			      |
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	|Total Size:					   350 screens|
	|Total Memory Used:				 3.5 megabytes|
	|Graphics Data:					 2.2 megabytes|
	|Music and Sound Data:				 850 kilobytes|
	|Music Sample Rate:				  20 kilohertz|
	|Screen Update:					50times a sec.|
	|Max.no.of Colours on Screen:				   128|
        |No.of different monsters:				   132|
	|Maximum Sprite Size:		      220 by 150 pixels("big")|
	|Levels of scrolling:	       13 outside,2 large areas inside|
	|Project Duration:				      9 months|
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THE GAME

 Many years ago, on a moonless night, a small child was stolen away
from its unsuspecting parents. Its mysterious abductors carried it far
across theland to the mighty temple Necropolis. There the child was
accepted by the mages of darkness, warrior prists of the Beast Lord.

 Deep below the temple the child was escorted, passing through a
labyrinth of rooms and passages to the Chambers Of Creation. There the
evil mages worked their dark arts creating strange creatures, plants
and traps to guard the Beast's stronghold. For the child they had a
special purpose, but first came years of preparation. Secret potions
concocted from the blood of rare creatures slowly transformed his
appearance - turning him from human into a strange creature of
incredible power, agility and strength. Deep hynosis caused him to
erase memories of his past life completely and become the warrior
messenger of the Beast.

Many years passed in his service to the
temple as he grew to maturity. Then one
day he discovered an awful secret - the
horrible truth about his past...a truth
that now leads him on a trail of total
and bloody revenge against his masters.

You were that child. Now the time has
come to enter the SHADOW OF THE BEAST!


      IN SEARCH OF THE BEAST

In the grounds of Necropolis all was silent and still. The moon, low 
and large on the horizon, threw long dark shadows into the corners and
a cool blue light across the stony ground, disguising the blood-red
stains on the sacrificial stone. Not a single creature stirred to
disrupt the tranquility, not a leaf moved on the nearby trees. There
was not a trace of life in that sinister place but for a single point
of light glinting against the age-worn face of a statue.

 Up there in the huge arms of the deity's image sat a lone creature. In
its powerful hand it clutched a Globe of Seeing which it moved slowly
from side to side examining its reflected features. As it did so it
recalled the events of that day: the frightened humans being herded
into the central courtyard; the pathetic pleas for help as they were
dragged one by one to the sacrificial stone; the final airrending
screams as the knife came down in one swift arc and the life blood ran.

 And then a tired, resigned face being pushed towards the stone, a face
that seemed of some importance to him. Yet how could that be when the
lives of these people meant nothing to him? And, as the gleaming blade
struck home, he recognised the agonised the agonised face of his father
and suddenly the painful memories of all he had been came flooding back
to him.

 His masters had done this to him. They had been responsible for all
that he was, and the loss of all he might have been. Well now they
would pay. Now the warrior would stop killing for his masters and begin
to exact his revenge.

 Standing, he lifted the globe high above his head and, clenching his
clawed hand, crushed it to a hundred tiny shards. Now the warrior's
head lefted towards the heavens. He searched the sky for the dark hulls
of the ships whence his masters had come and let out a roaring howl
that spoke his defiance. Nothing would stop him now. He would crush 
them as he had crushed their globe, and he would never stop until the
blood of all of them and their creations soaked into the earth...


           ------------------------------------

...flame red eyes stared out across the sun-scorched plain, scanning
the distant treeline. The warrior was allowing himself a brief moment
to enjoy the stillness - a respite before he once again set mind and
body against the unnatural creatures his former masters had spawned.
Drawing in breath sharply, he flexed his hardened muscles, became aware
of the blood rushing through his arteries, the double-hearts pounding
furiously in his chest. The warrior knew that his power and speed were
all that ensured his survival. The day that he became weak, the hour
that he became slow, would be his last.
 Setting off at a run he headed towards the trees, stirring up a trail
of grey dust behind him. To have remained on the plain while the sun
was high would have been fatal, but the shade of the trees most likely
concealed a darker fate. As the warrior reached the first growths his
instincts told him that he was unlikely to be alone for long. His eyes
darted from side to side watching for the tiniest movement that would
betray a predator.

 When it came it did so with speed, rushing at him full on, its black
wings crashing through the foliage, and from its blood-filled mouth
came a piercing scream as it sighted its kill. The warrior had barely
enough time to crouch as the creature flew at his head. Turning
swiftly he brought his bone-covered fist up hard into the creature's
soft underbelly. Now it screamed in pain, spinning in mid-air and
crashing down between the gnarled roots of a tree.

 But the warrior ignored the body. Behind him had come another screech,
too close this time. As he turned and dived for cover another winged
demon flew at him, claws extended for the kill. The warrior struck out
again but the creature was too quick and he felt its talons tearing
into his abdomen as he rolled away into the undergrowth. He lay there
panting, momentarily dazed. He could feel a warm wetness across his
side and stomach, and with it a sharpening pain. But he concentrated on
ignoring it. The wound would congeal soon enough, and if he stayed any
longer he would lose far more than a little blood.

 He stood slowly, fighting the waves of pain that passed through him,
feeling his hearts pounding faster, but he had to be moving. Other
creatures would not ward off another attack. As he stumbled between the
trees he noticed something out of place against a distant trunk. Coming
closer he realised that it was a doorway, a Beast-Mage construction,
and hurried onwards. Thinking only of the things that would soon be
trailing him, the warrior took a chance an dropped through into the
darkness.

 He was just in time. Behind him there was a blood curdling scream,
followed by a resounding crash as another winged creature failed to
follow him through the opening. The warrior took only a moment to
reflect that once more he had beaten the odds, before taking stock of
his situation. There was a cool breeze coming from somewhere beneath
him, and, now that the creature had retreated, a menacing silence fell,
a silence punctuated only by the slow dripping of water deeper within
the cavern.

 As the warrior's eyes became accustomed to the poor light he made out
a worn stairway curving away from him into the darkness. So, his
suspicions were confirmed. He had stumbled upon another of his
ex-masters' outposts. They were becoming more frequent. Could this be
the end of his long journey? Had he foundthe stronghold at last? There
was only one way to find out...

 Padding slowly down the stairway, the warrior readied himself for
whateverabominations lay in wait at the bottom. Soon the stairway
straightened out and the warrior found himself on a narrow ledge. The
phospherescence from the cavern walls was enough to reveal that he was
in a huge chamber that extended away into pitch darkness.

 Now the silence broke into distant sounds of angry growling. Whatever
inhabited this place had obviously picked up his scent.

 The ledge that he was on appeared to be deserted so he advanced
slowly. Without warning there was a sizzling sound behind him.
Instinctively the warrior jumped and felt his feet singe as a white hot
fireball shot beneath him to explode violently against the cavern wall.
So, his former master were awareof his presence, and realised his
intent. He would haveto be twice as alert now. They would use every
means in their power to stop him.

 Ahead of him now he could make out a rough wooden ladder staked into
the side of the ledge. Cat-like he swung himself onto it and began his
descent, dropping silently the rest of the way when he saw another
ledge beneath him. No sooner had his feet hit the ground than a scaled
abomination rushed forward, jaws grinding ferociously. The warrior
turned calmly and despatched it with a single blow.

 And so the ordeal went on as he worked his way deeper into the cavern.
Creatures the like of which he had never seen beset him at every step,
but each was destroyed with detemination as the warrior remembered his
promise to himself to continue until every last one was dead.

 He had just dropped onto another ledge when he caught a glimpse of
something shinning in the distance. Moving closer his keen  vision made
out a key sitting on a a shelf on the other side of a broad chasm.He
started to move swiftly towards it when he was halted byan almighty
roar. Suddenly he was confronted by a  huge beast-like guard. His
opponent took a short moment to size him up and then made a bellowing
charge, swinging his double-headed battle axe at the warrior's head.
Without losing a moment the warrior sidestepped the blow and slammed
his fist into the guard's throat. There was a sickening crunch as the
neck snapped, and the warrior stepped back quickly as the huge body
tumbled forward over the ledge.

 There was no moment for recovery before another hulking figure was
rushing headlong at him. But this time the warrior was ready and his
flying kicksentthe guard plummeting backward to join his fellow. Now a
clear way lay ahead of him to the key. He sprinted along the remainder
of the ledge and just as the edge of the abyss met him he leapt
forward, hands reaching out to grasp the edge of the shelf.

 He made it in a shower of dirt and stones, and caught his breath as
he hung swinging above a seemingly bottomless chasm. He could feel his
sweaty hands begin to lose their grip. If he let go now he would almost
certainly die. If he made it onto the shelf, who knew where the key
might lead him? Now the warrior's true destiny would be decided...



                    THE WARRIOR'S OBJECTIVE

 You must fight your way through several different regions in order to
reach the heart of the enemy's stronghold and face your ultimate
adversary. Any creatures you encounter will invariably be hostile and
will cause damage when they come into contact with you. Contact can be
avoided by punching or kicking creatures away from you before they get
too close, or by shooting them if you have a weapon.

 Each time you are damaged your heart-rate will increase. Your current
heart-rate is shown on the monitor in the top-left corner of the
screen. If your heart-rate gets too high your hearts will burst,
resulting in instant death.

 During your attack on the stronghold you will find various artefacts
which can be used to assist you on your quest. Some of these items,
keys for instance, will be collected for later use when you move over
them. Items that you have in your possession will be shown at the top
of the screen. Other items, such as potions will have an instant effect
which is shown on screen when you move over the item.

 There are also weapons that can be collected at certain points in the
game. These are used instead of punching and kicking to destroy your
opponents. Certain creatures can only be destroyed by special weapons.
It is up to you to discover the best way to use the artefacts you find
and how to tackle the creatures you encounter.




                    CONTROLLING THE WARRIOR


 Use the joystick to control the warrior's movements:

                    JUMP/UP
                   (USE EXIT)

          MOVE LEFT          MOVE RIGHT

                  CROUCH/DOWN

 Press the fire button to PUCH, or KICK (while jumping). If you have a
weapon in your possession, pressing fire will fire the weapon rather
than punching or kicking.

 Moving the joystick up or down will normally cause the warrior to jump
or crouch. If however, you are standing on or against a ladder moving
the joystick up or down will cause the warrior to ascend or descend.

 There are exits between areas. If an exit exit is facing you, simply
walk into it to use it. If an exit is to one side of you, stand next to
it, and then push the joystick up to use it.

 It is also wise to watch your step. The warrior can survive short
falls, but stepping into a pit or off a high ledge will prove fatal.

 Pressing P at any stage will pause the game.
Fire the joystick to restart.
Pressing the ESCAPE key will restart the game from any point.

 Do not hope for good luck. Your survival will depend on your skill and
ingenuity alone.




      THE END TYPED BY THE TWINS OF TRILOGY IN OCTOBER


