Technological Terror
Example 127
★★★"Technological Terror"
The Decomposition Ray Gun is a thing carried by the player.
First we need to define our shooting action:
Shooting it with is an action applying to two things.
Check shooting something with something:
if the player is not carrying the Ray Gun, say "You are pathetically unarmed!" instead;
if the second noun is not the Ray Gun, say "[The second noun] does not fire." instead;
if the noun is the Ray Gun, say "Nice trick if you can do it!" instead;
if the noun is the player, say "That would be disastrous!" instead.
Next, some grammar to allow the player to use this action:
Understand "shoot [gun] at [something ungunlike]" as shooting it with (with nouns reversed).
Definition: a thing is ungunlike if it is not the gun.
Understand "shoot [something ungunlike] with [gun]" as shooting it with. Understand "shoot [something] with [something]" as shooting it with.
Understand "shoot [something] at [something]" as shooting it with (with nouns reversed). Understand "fire [gun] at [something ungunlike]" as shooting it with (with nouns reversed). Understand "fire at [something ungunlike] with [gun]" as shooting it with. Understand "fire at [something] with [something]" as shooting it with.
Strictly speaking, we only need these last grammar lines (with "understand shoot something…") in order to define an action that the player can take. Adding more grammar lines means that Inform will try to match the most specific ones first, which is useful when the player types something ambiguous and there is one choice that obviously fits this action better than the others. See the chapter on Understanding for a further discussion.
Here we get to use "now…" to give it its destructive effect:
Carry out shooting something with something:
say "ZAP! [The noun] twinkles out of existence! [if something is part of the noun][The list of things which are part of the noun] clatter to the ground! [end if][paragraph break]";
now every thing which is part of the noun is in the location;
now the noun is nowhere.
The Deathbot Assembly Line is a room. "Here is the heart of the whole operation, where your opponents are assembled fresh from scrap metal and bits of old car." The dangerous robot is a thing in the Assembly Line. "One dangerous robot looks ready to take you on!" A robotic head, a drill arm, a needle arm, a crushing leg and a kicking leg are parts of the dangerous robot.
Instead of examining something when something is part of the noun:
say "[The noun] consists of [a list of things which are part of the noun]."
Test me with "x robot / shoot robot / fire at kicking leg / shoot gun at drill arm / look".
Test me with "x robot / shoot robot / fire at kicking leg / shoot gun at drill arm / look".
Deathbot Assembly Line
Here is the heart of the whole operation, where your opponents are assembled fresh from scrap metal and bits of old car.
One dangerous robot looks ready to take you on!
>(Testing.)
>[1] x robot
The dangerous robot consists of a robotic head, a drill arm, a needle arm, a crushing leg and a kicking leg.
>[2] shoot robot
(with the Decomposition Ray Gun)
ZAP! The dangerous robot twinkles out of existence! The robotic head, the drill arm, the needle arm, the crushing leg and the kicking leg clatter to the ground!
>[3] fire at kicking leg
(with the Decomposition Ray Gun)
ZAP! The kicking leg twinkles out of existence!
>[4] shoot gun at drill arm
ZAP! The drill arm twinkles out of existence!
>[5] look
Deathbot Assembly Line
Here is the heart of the whole operation, where your opponents are assembled fresh from scrap metal and bits of old car.
You can see a crushing leg, a needle arm and a robotic head here.
Here is the heart of the whole operation, where your opponents are assembled fresh from scrap metal and bits of old car.
One dangerous robot looks ready to take you on!
>(Testing.)
>[1] x robot
The dangerous robot consists of a robotic head, a drill arm, a needle arm, a crushing leg and a kicking leg.
>[2] shoot robot
(with the Decomposition Ray Gun)
ZAP! The dangerous robot twinkles out of existence! The robotic head, the drill arm, the needle arm, the crushing leg and the kicking leg clatter to the ground!
>[3] fire at kicking leg
(with the Decomposition Ray Gun)
ZAP! The kicking leg twinkles out of existence!
>[4] shoot gun at drill arm
ZAP! The drill arm twinkles out of existence!
>[5] look
Deathbot Assembly Line
Here is the heart of the whole operation, where your opponents are assembled fresh from scrap metal and bits of old car.
You can see a crushing leg, a needle arm and a robotic head here.